Metamorphosis
by grainsofsand
Summary: Gaara has a mysterious ailment, and an unusual obsession with a certain girl. Read to find out more.
1. Chapter 1

Metamorphosis

Metamorphosis

Hey, this is set just after the forest of death scene that Hinata saw. You know, the one where Gaara killed those rain nin? Well, this is where it will veer off from the original plot line. It will show how he will evolve into a full demon. You know what? I like making him into a super-Gaara, it's just so much fn. Well, what can I say? It makes for good typing, at least on my computer. Rated M, just to be safe, although I won't have any intimacy between Gaara and Hinata at this point, I think they're way too young for that. Mostly graphic violence and such. Besides, the ratings guide says that although you can have adult content in an M story, you can't have anything graphic, and the one time I do post something graphic, that's the time that someone reports me and I get kicked off the site. That would suck more than words can describe, so I will play it safe, for now at least. Besides, all I need is some kid that decided to be a big boy/girl and read an M story, then get caught by their mom/dad. Their mom/dad would then undoubtedly do research on the site and then try to report abuse. I don't want to give them anything. I like typing these stories. Maybe I'm paranoid. Anyway, here we go! oh, and I don't Own Naruto.

Chapter One

It was getting worse. He had been hurting for days now, weeks even. It all started just before he left the village with his siblings. He also noticed something else even more disturbing. He was not on top of his game, wasn't nearly as strong as he once was. No one else knew, but he knew, and that was all that mattered. His reflexes had slowed, and so had his healing capabilities. His chakra was down, and even his sand had slowed down. His siblings merely wrote it off as him toying with his victims, but there had been a time when he could've easily caught each and every one of those senbon by hand before the guy could blink. Now he was forced to use his sand shield, his impenetrable armor. This, on top of all of the pain, worried him.

His siblings always acted so cocky and arrogant, and never faced the reality of things; that they weren't that good. Oh sure, they were better than average, but they were nothing spectacular. They had him to thank for their flawless mission record. unbeknownst to the other villages, Gaara had actually graduated first from the academy, just after Yashamaru betrayed him. He was the youngest recorded graduate in the history of the hidden villages, and he had the highest scores. He was of jonin and ANBU strength and rank, but it was all kept hush-hush, even amongst his own village. Not even Baki knew about him.

Oh yes, the Chuunin exams weren't that difficult so far, even in his weakened condition. He had made a game of the first one, and the second one as well, at first. But the pain was beginning to get to him, and he had been forced to pass the exams quickly, against his orders. Like he cared about orders. Their team had caught the attentions of the proctor, and even the ANBU and Hokage of this village. There was no doubt in his mind that his father was pitching a bitch because of it, and probably Orochimaru as well. He was supposed to kill at least three or four more hours out there, and come in just ahead of the former record.

Well, they could whine all they wanted, they weren't the ones who were throwing up blood, now were they? He wondered what on earth was happening to his body, and if it had something to do with the sand spirit within him. Probably, they probably screwed up the sealing process when he was still within his mother. Chiyo was old and sloppy, and his father was an idiot, so it wasn't that far-fetched. It could also be poison, but that seemed unlikely. He was always careful when he ate, and the chances of multiple attempts sliding by his nose were unlikely. He also hadn't noticed any strange substances on his clothing or other items. Besides, his father wasn't stupid enough to try to assassinate him on such a big mission, was he?

Well, whatever it was, he needed to fix it, soon. He was getting weaker by the day, and he often spiked a fever, but no one noticed. No one would care even if they did notice. He put a hand to his head, and his sibling tensed believing that he was having issues with Shukaku again. It never occurred to them that he could simply be having a migraine. Of course, in this case, the pounding in his temples was most likely a sign of something more sinister. Still, all he really wanted right now, aside from the pain stopping and his old strength back, was a nice, dark, quiet place to meditate, and hopefully some hot water so he could brew some tea. Was it really so much to ask?

**It comes, child.**

_What comes? The one from the forest?_

**Yes, it is night now, they finally managed to get here. Watch that one closely, child, it is different from the others. I can sense it.**

_Yes. It is the reason why I stopped back there, I was curious about this one_

**We should see it, child, so that we recognize it in the future, from a distance. **

_We won't get a good look, those two rats will follow me around; they seem to think that their presence will make a difference. I'm feeling too sick to deal with the headache that their deaths would bring. I should have strangled them long ago._

**Perhaps we could arrange for a little accident during the attack?**

_I'm thinking about it. _He tried to tune out his siblings' complaints, and glanced at the different one and her comrades. She was tiny, even smaller than he was, and he was pleased to see her fear. She was shy and submissive. Yet, this made him a little sad, to see her tremble so. He heard the one with the mutt before, calling him a pipsqueak. He didn't appreciate that at all, but the look on his face was priceless. He knew all too well that if he faced the mutt and his master in battle that they would back out, and the same was for that bug user. He could smell the beetles on him, and the scent wasn't pleasant, not like blood. The girl though, she smelled delicious, and pure. And the look of terror in her eyes was bittersweet, and he secretly reveled in it. He had decided that if he could not have companionship from others, then he would have their fear, and ultimately their death. That one, though, he would be sure to take his time and enjoy her thoroughly.

He did not come across such a treat often, and never one of this quality. Yes, he would have to think of a way to get maximum enjoyment and pleasure from this one. Her blood was too sweet and delicious to have it otherwise. He sighed in contentment as he sat on the roof of the tower in the forest of death. Here he was away from the others, an only the faint screams of terror were on the wind tonight, as one team or another met with disaster out there. There was also that snake-man, Orochimaru. He sent shivers of disgust through Gaara. It was the way that he looked at him, the same look he's seen in the eyes of men when they were with a prostitute or stripper.

The idea of Orochimaru alone with him was disconcerting; had it been a few months ago he would've been able to handle him, or at least fend him off. Now though, this strange disease was taking it's toll, and he was no longer so sure about his abilities. He cursed his father and that damned old woman again. He hated them both. If they hadn't done this to him, then he would've never been in this mess.

The days flew by swiftly, and soon it was time for the preliminaries, where the full extent of Gaara's illness was made known to him. He was unable to track his opponent's movements with his eyes. Had his opponent been a jonin, he could've found himself in dire straits, but as it was, he had ended up with a few nasty bruises , but he had been able to win the fight. His illness worried him, but again, he was the only one who noticed. Oh how he loathed his siblings just then, and how they pretended to care about him. He knew all too well that it was them against him, and that they had often secretly hoped that he would die at the hands of some assassin. Ungrateful idiots, the both of them. How many times had he rescued them, and made a success out of a certain failure? Who was it that they always turned to when things got tough?

He grimaced in disgust, and settled down to meditate, hoping to calm the pounding in his temples. Of course, there was another reason why he was seething. That wretch Neji had spilled Hinata's precious blood. That blood was his, and only he was allowed to spill it, to feel it, to taste it. She was _his _prey, and his kill. He would be certain to kill Neji. The Hyuuga was accurate, agile, and quick; but not as quick or agile as that Lee kid was. Gaara was sure that, even in his weakened condition, he could take him down.

For the moment, however, that one sound ninja was standing below him, challenging him. Of course, the sound ninja wanted to fight Sasuke, and he thought that he would increase his chances by killing Gaara. What an idiot, didn't he realize that they were supposed to be cooperating? Well, he would have none of this nonsense, not tonight. It was a full moon, and the demon was stirring within him. Fine, he wanted the sound ninja so bad, then he could have him.

The ninja was ripped apart- what was his name? Dosu? Yes, that was right, Dosu. Well, it didn't matter anymore, because he was in several pieces, and the roof was a wreck too. He gasped for air, struggling to rein in the demon and to handle the pain.

He spied two, no, three, shadowy figures watching him in the distance. Orochimaru's lapdog, his father's lapdog, and what appeared to be the proctor from the preliminary rounds. He watched the two lapdogs discuss something, probably him killing the genin just now, then Baki took off after Hayate Gekko, vanishing over the rooftops. He rolled his eyes in disgust. Baki was always so sloppy, and he would probably put the village on high alert. It was one thing for a foreign ninja to die, especially one who was taking the chuunin exams, but it was another thing entirely for a jonin to die. He crushed the remains or the body, leaving only a wrecked roof and a few bloodstains. He left the headband; by now the village knew that the sound ninjas were under the command of Orochimaru, and they would not be too concerned by the demise of one or two.

Just to be safe, he decided to find a different rooftop. This whole affair was ridiculous, and way more trouble than it was worth. His father never thought things through, and would probably be killed by the snake because of his stupidity. Why did he insist upon dragging everyone down with him?

Shukaku shifted uneasily in his prison. He was feeling guilty, which was not something he was accustomed to. It was he who was at fault for his child's condition. He was turning him fully demon, and the process was painful. He was doing it to protect the boy from those who would harm him. The members of a group called the Akatasuki were hunting down demon vessels and extracting the demons, which killed the containers. He heard this through Gaara, who had gleaned the information from missions abroad. It was only a matter of time before they got to him, and it was Shukaku's job to protect him by any means necessary. The problem was, he was unsure of just how to break the news to his host. He was also unsure of just where would be a safe place for him to undergo the final stages of the transformation.

Shukaku knew one thing though, and that was that Gaara was on his own, for now. All he could do was wait and watch.

Yeah, I know, I didn't get very far in the initial chapter. The next one will see more action and stuff, so stay tuned! Please? I updated a bunch of other chapters, so it's not like you don't have anything to read. I hope you guys will like this story!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

I feel so bad; this story has been so neglected for the past few months! I got so caught up in finishing Silent Angel and getting Demon Dance going that this one got shoved to the back burner. Even Pint-sized Demons and Cookies has a decent amount of chapters done! I'm so sorry for the wait, so here we go.

Chapter Two

Gaara was in the arena, watching Temari and Shikamaru battle it out. The stupid blond had let him goad her, and her anger had made her reckless. Now she was taking her eyes off of her opponent, and that was going to cost her. He watched him make his hand sign, and…yeah, she was caught. And she had the nerve to act all surprised. What a moron. He sighed, and tried to ignore the slight rattle in his lungs. That had showed up yesterday; not only was he throwing up blood, he was coughing it up too. Oh goody, that just made his day. Not only that, but he had a fever, of one hundred five point eight degrees. His head was pounding, and that bastard Sasuke wasn't even here. He didn't feel like fighting, really, didn't feel like doing much of anything. He wanted to go back to the apartment and hide in his dark little room.

The exam proctor announced that it would take ten minutes, and then the Uchiha would be disqualified. He held back a sigh, and silently bade the kid to hurry up. The kid had talent, but he wouldn't pass the exams, not even if he won all of his battles. He simply wasn't mature enough to be a leader. He constantly underestimated his opponents, and when things got tough he either threw a fit or ran away. His soul was ripe for Orochimaru to take, full of betrayal and a desire for powers that he was too irresponsible to use.

The crowd yelled, and he saw Sasuke and his teacher appear in a whirlwind of leaves. The proctor called for him, and he trudged down, after killing off two henchmen and scaring the crap out of the fox and the shadow user. He stepped out into the light, and began to walk toward the proctor and his opponent when a wrenching pain doubled him over with a cry. The crowd shouted when he began to vomit up blood, and medical ninja swarmed around him. At first he tried to bat them away with a transformed arm-when had that happened? His face wasn't transformed; he knew that because his teeth were still normal.

Gaara began to convulse suddenly, and Baki and his team were dragged to the arena, and the Hokage himself came down to check on him.

"The demon within him is making him sick, and releasing a lot of chakra. We need to get him to a room that has a chakra seal on it. He is unfit for battle, and this battle will be postponed until I say otherwise. Go now." The Hokage dismissed them, and he was scooped, convulsions and all, onto a field stretcher and rushed to the hospital.

When he awoke, he was in for a rude surprise. Not only was he all alone in a strange bed in a strange room, each of his hands were handcuffed to the bedrails. He growled furiously under his breath, and tried to gather his chakra. The sand only responded to the area immediately surrounding him, and wouldn't do anything else. He glared at the seals surrounding him furiously, willing them to disappear, but they stayed where they were. He was trapped there for the time being. He could get the sand to defend him like a shield, but it wouldn't even attack the handcuffs. His rage increased, building within him and waiting to explode like a volcano.

At least he wasn't attached to an IV or anything else important really. They had little pads on his chest connected to wires and machines that measured his heart rate, respiration, brain activity, and his chakra. They had that glue that left your skin feeling gummy and would take forever to come off in a shower. His legs, too, were chained to the metal rail. He would've been able to snap them, if he was healthy, but his current state didn't offer up any perks, really. He was surprised that no one had decided to kill him yet.

Maybe they wanted him to starve to death, since they hadn't left him any food or water, and he hadn't had any for weeks. That could be it, but why stick him in a hospital bed? Sealed room and chains he could understand, but a bed? What the hell was that?!

It could also be death by boredom. He had nothing to do; he didn't have anything to read, or write with, or even look at. The walls were white, but they looked gray in the gloom. There weren't any windows, or pictures. A clock was on the wall in front of him, ticking away, but nothing else. The floor, well, what little he could see anyway, was simple white tile. His gourd was in a corner nearby, and he had to wonder what they were thinking, leaving it in here with him. Unless… perhaps they tampered with it? It was certainly a possibility. If so, then what did they do? Glue the cork in? A fat lot of difference _that _would make. Poison? How on earth would that hurt him? Explosives? On the surface it made sense, but they wouldn't destroy the sand, and if he was paying attention he would be able to detect them. Chakra seal? No, it wouldn't work, and even if it did, the sand wouldn't even be able to shield him.

His musings were interrupted by a coughing fit, causing blood to drip out of his mouth. The bastards didn't even have the decency to leave him some tissues. A tendril of sand dabbed the blood away. He pulled the sand around him in a cocoon. They had the air conditioning on high, and all they left him with was a damn sheet, white of course. How novel. He'd be damned if he froze to death in this place after walking around the desert at night in the middle of winter with nothing but his regular clothes on, which were, of course, at the base of the gourd. He growled again, how dare they strip him!

The door banged open, and he glared at the intruder. A nurse wheeled in another bed with-what the hell was she doing here? Hinata lay on the bed unconscious. The one with the heavenly blood, that shouldn't have been let out of the hospital in the first place. He had seen her in the stands, and he had wondered what she was doing there. Now he was stuck in the same room with her unable to even taste that crimson elixir flowing through her veins. Death by torture.

The nurse skirted him nervously as he glared at her, and darted out. He sighed and rolled his eyes. The incompetent ninny had forgotten to check his chart, or anything else for that matter, such as the dainty girl in the bed beside him, whose chakra was also now sealed, since the seals applied to anyone in the room. The girl shuddered, and coughed up some blood. He hissed angrily. This was gong to be a long day.

That evening, according to the clock, three ANBU came in. They tried to act confident and businesslike, but it was ruined by the fact that he could smell their fear, and see it in their eyes through their masks.

"Three ANBU to check on a genin?" he growled sarcastically. They stiffened.

"Sabako no Gaara, you are here under the suspicion of harboring a dangerous contagion, you are to remain quarantined until further notice."

"Then why is she here?" he jerked his head in the direction of the unconscious Hinata.

"She has been determined to be a low-risk individual. Exposure to you would confirm your disease, and her loss is not considered important to the Hyuuga clan."

"Fine, how will you determine if she is exhibiting any symptoms? She already coughs up blood, so…"

"That is not your concern!"

"That tells me that you don't know, or that your little excuse for imprisoning me is a lie. Either way, you are far too incompetent to deserve the rank of ANBU. The real reason you're here is because I am the only living demon vessel who was born with a demon, and you want to use me as some sort of guinea pig."

"No, we really think-"

"Fine, we'll play it your way. I have the plague, and Temari, Kankuro, and Baki were all exposed. So was the Kazekage, many of the other nobles in the stands, including our feudal lord, and many of their body guards. We're all gonna die horrible deaths because a shipment of grain also carried infected rats and fleas, and they were also brought here. I also sprayed Uchiha with blood, and the exam proctor-what's his name? Genma?-and the other candidates in the final exam were exposed. The Hokage was too. You gonna quarantine them too?" his face was blank, and the ANBU shifted nervously. The plague was too big a risk to chance it all on speculation. It was too hard to tell if the kid was being serious or not.

The ANBU rushed out and Gaara bit back a smile. Sometimes it was best to simply share the misery. Those poor ninja were in for a mountain of paperwork. Every single person in the stands was going to have to be quarantined and tested for weeks. It was almost worth being locked up in here. It was a pity that he was going to miss the look on his team's faces, and his father. He began to chuckle softly, and coughed again. Of course, this would mean that the plan would fall apart, and the mission a failure, but really, who cared? He didn't, and there was no way that they would go ahead without him, because they didn't have a chance without him. He chuckled again, blood dripping from his mouth. He wondered how long it would take for them to realize that the threat of an outbreak of the plague was a joke.

Stupid is as stupid does, and the three stooges would suffer for it all. The processing, rounding up the "exposed," getting themselves tested, hunting down non-existent rats and grain, it was a pity that he wouldn't get to see it. Share the misery, and watch the show.


	3. Chapter 3

Hello, longtime no see! Well here it is, chapter three of Metamorphosis! I hope you enjoy it. Oh, and just a warning, Gaara is going to be a bit of a jerk for a little bit, but this is while he was young and still suffering from his issues from his uncle and stuff, okay? Alright then, let's get started.

Chapter Three

Gaara sighed in irritation. He was very uncomfortable, since he couldn't shift his position due to the restraints. Man that girl's blood smelled so good, it was torturous. It was such a pity that he couldn't get to it. He felt his demon stir within him, which seemed to be happening more and more these days.

He heard a soft, breathy sigh, and saw the girl sit up. Her eyes looked glazed and unfocused. She stared at him, and he stared back, unblinkingly. After about five minutes she began to giggle.

"What, you little mousey-bitch?!" being chained to a bed and unable to escape had made him a tad grumpy. The twelve-year-old longed to rip the girl's tongue out of her mouth.

"You have pretty butterflies all over you, and they keep making funny faces!" Holy crap, she was high. He was dealing with a drugged out little girl who was hallucinating, and he wondered just what the doctors had put in her IV.

"Pretty butterflies, eh? Wow, that's a new one. You do realize that you're high, right?" he was amused. The situation was so ridiculous, so he might as well have some fun with it. It would give him something to hold over her head later.

"Yep, lots and lots of butterflies, really pretty butterflies. I like butterflies, don't you? You're pretty too, like a, uh, uh, um, uh, a birdie that goes tweet tweet! It just went in your ear! But you're pretty too, like a, uh uhm, uh, a thorny flower that eats people! I want to be a flower; then I could have butterflies too!"

"Oh? Well, thanks, I guess. Hmm, I'm a thorny flower that eats people. I don't think I've heard that one before." He rolled his eyes, but was amused and sort of flattered nonetheless, despite the girl being high.

"No! You're a pretty thorny flower that eats people! Can I keep you?"

"I'm not a pet, so no. Absolutely not." Now he was insulted.

"But you're so pretty! I'll take good care of you, I promise! I'll feed you and prune you and repot you and fertilize you so you can grow big and strong!"

"No, now shut up! Twittering little wretch." She protested some more, but quieted down and began to mumble about purple clouds and an orange sky with a blue sun. What made that even more unusual was the fact that there was no window in the room, nor was there one visible through the tiny slot on the door. He rolled his eyes in disdain, yet an annoying part of him found the girl amusing, and so did the demon within him. Eventually she fell asleep, and he was both relieved and put out that his only source of entertainment was out of commission. Shukaku chuckled softly, finding the whole thing rather amusing.

**She is rather cute, you know, and would make for a good companion, my child.**

_No, I have learned my lessons well; I must love only myself, and fight for only myself. Others will only seek to hurt me and manipulate me. I will never be someone's pawn._

**As you wish. The masked ones return, beware of their treachery. **

_I'm chained to the bed without chakra. The only thing I can do is manipulate them and show them how stupid they are._

**Enjoy yourself then, my child.**

"Gaara, this has gone on long enough! Now, you will give us the answers that we seek!"

"Or you'll what? You can't risk torturing me because you fear my contagion, so there isn't anything else you can do. How did you ever pass the ANBU exams? I've met academy students who are smarter than you!"

"Shut up you brat!"

"Alright then, but I don't see how I'm going to tell you anything by keeping quiet."

"Grrr, you, you, you, you tell us what the contagion is, or else!"

"I refer back to my first answer, morons."

"I will not ask again, what is the contagion?!"

"You just did."

"Did what?"

"Ask the question again."

"You little fucker!" the leader lunged foreword but was held back by the other two. Gaara looked unimpressed.

"Oh, yes, that's absolutely terrifying. I'm quaking in my hospital gown."

"Hang on there, man; think about what you're doing. Whatever he's got, you don't wanna catch it."

"Yeah stupid. Think, I know it's hard, but try. You might just succeed."

"You little smart-alecky bastard! I'll teach you-" the other two ANBU struggled to hold on.

"You're just mad because you know I'm right, you idiot."

"Why you-" the leader was dragged from the room, leaving Gaara the victor of the battle. He gave a contented sigh. Too easy.

A few hours later Hinata woke up.

"Finally awake, _princess,_ what took you so long?" she flinched from the way he said 'princess,' what on earth did she ever do to him?

"Wh-wh-where am I?"

"Wh-wh-where are you? Don't you know how to talk? You'd think they'd have the decency to give me an intelligent room mate. You're in the hospital girl, where'd you think you were?" She cringed again.

"Great, not only are you weak pathetic, and stupid, but you're afraid of your own shadow! How'd I get stuck with such a worthless little-"

"Now, now, Lord Gaara, don't be so mean to the girl. She's sick too you know." The Third walked in. Gaara acknowledged him with a jerk of his chin. Hinata struggled up and tried to get out of her bed to bow, but the Hokage waived her back.

"You've caused quite a stir, young man, and why is that my ANBU keep harassing me to get tested for the black plague? And why did the come crying to me to interrogate you? What mischief could a sealed, shackled, unarmed gennin cause? Unless, of course, you're not really a gennin."

"Heh, clever, old man, you're the first person to realize my skills are much too advanced to be a mere gennin. In Suna, I'm an elite ANBU assassin, ranked over all of the jonin and ANBU of my village. Of course, I work alone, and no one realizes my true identity out there, not even my so-called sensei. So I'm sure I could cause quite a bit of mischief if I wanted."

"Yes, if the circumstances were normal, but your demon has made them otherwise. Pure demonic chakra is devouring your internal organs, tissue and chakra system, and it's spreading throughout your body. Not even your skeletal structure is immune. Why? I don't know, and I have kept this from the other shinobi of both our lands. Hinata, you are not to repeat this to anyone, not even your clan, understand? Good." Hinata meekly nodded, although she didn't understand the necessity of the secret.

"Well, I hope they continue harassing you, old man, because it means that my little game continues. I told them that I had the plague, you see. I'm sure they will realize that I lied soon enough, but I've got to have something to entertain me." Gaara looked rather smug. Sarutobi chuckled, what an interesting young man. He checked the monitors for his pulse and temperature, and left.

Hinata gazed at the fearsome Gaara. Although very confused, she felt sorry for him. He must be in a horrific amount of pain, and was dying at such a young age! Of course, he was kind of mean, but who wouldn't be, given the situation?

"I'm s-s-sorry, Gaara-sama, I h-h-had n-no idea-"

"Just shut up, will you? You're so annoying." She bowed her head, and bit her lip.

_Is this true, Shukaku?_

**Yes it is, my child. I'm transforming you to protect you.**

_What? Why, and from what?_

**I am turning you into a pure-bred demon. I need to do this to protect you from the Akatasuki. If they pull me out of you, it would kill you. By turning you into a demon, you will be much stronger, and you can summon me and my clans' mates as if you had signed a contract, like the summoning toads, slugs, snakes and the like. You will have mastery of a demonic clan, my child. I trust in your wisdom. I will not lie to you, the transformation is a long process, and is quite painful, but the end result will be worth it, I promise you. You know I always keep my word, my child.**

_Very well then, there is no point whining about it or trying to change things. Enough about this, what's with that girl?_

**I believe she is sympathetic to you, and not a threat. A harmless little lamb, really, sort of reminds of you when you were little, child.**

_I don't want or need her sympathy!_

**You have it nonetheless. Look at the bright side; at least she's not smothering you like the Uchiha's fan girls. Can you imagine what that would be like? Unbearable, smelly creatures!**

_That is true. Let's hope that it stays that way._

Hinata gazed at him with an expression of sadness. He huffed irritably and told her to go back to sleep. He ignored the slight pang that her hurt expression gave him.

Alright, chapter three is done! I hope you enjoyed it!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Hinata gazed at her hazardous roommate. He was so mean! Whenever she tried to talk to him, he told her to shut up, and called her so many horrible things! She never thought that anyone could be worse than her father, but he put him to shame. A tear slid down her cheek, and she tried to wipe it away furiously. Now was not the time to be weak.

"Oh, stop your sniveling, you disgusting wretch! That's all you've done all day, crying like a baby! This is why you're such a loser, because you whimper and whine constantly, instead of actually doing something about your problem, you vile, filthy little whore!" Gaara snapped at her, irritated. The restraints were itchy, he was stiff from being unable to stretch and his shoulders and neck ached. A long, hot shower sounded heavenly, but of course those morons wouldn't let him take one. Bastards, they hadn't even bothered to check his bed pan, or to even insert a catheter. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on your point of view, he hadn't had anything to eat or drink for weeks, so he was empty anyway. Still, the inconsideration was very insulting, and he was extremely irritable as a result. Bastards, well, they hadn't checked the girl either, but she was able to get up and use the bathroom, since she wasn't chained to her bed. Lucky little bitch.

"I'm s-s-sorry, I-"

"Shut up, your stuttering is annoying. Just shut up!"

"S-sorry."

"Shut up!"

"O-okay, s-s-sorry to disturb y-you." She bowed her head, biting her lip to stop from crying even more. Why was he so mean to her?! What did she ever do to him?!

The door opened and a strange man with a cane walked in. Gaara narrowed his eyes.

"Who the fuck are you?"

"Well, I see that the ANBU weren't lying when they said that you had a nasty temper. Not that it concerns you, but my name is Hiashi Hyuuga, Hinata's father. Hinata! Get out of that bed and get dressed, we're going home. You've been a burden long enough!"

"Ah, so her name is Hinata, and here I've been calling her the mousy bitch," Gaara drawled, trying to needle her father. He reminded him of his own, which didn't sit well with him. Hiashi glowered at him.

"Well, I suppose you are tight, she's a disappointment in everything. She's weak, plain, and has no talent in anything. My only use for her is to marry her off to someone to strengthen the ties we have with other clans. Just you wait, she's probably sterile too, but that's not something a little kid like you can understand."

"Not necessarily, it means that she can't pop out a kid after a romp in the bedroom. Just remember, she's your daughter, so technically, her failure is also your fault."

"Well, you are a disrespectful gennin, aren't you? Young as you are, you probably haven't even made your first kill yet." Gaara roared with laughter, making Hiashi recoil reflexively. There was something wrong with him, something that wasn't human.

"You old fool! I've slaughtered thousands! I've killed far more than you, Hiashi Hyuuga, and not all of them went swiftly. I like to play, you see. We've met before, and I beat you then. I'm the one responsible for your cane, and if I hadn't been on a deadline, you wouldn't be alive right now. Poor little Hinata would be an orphan!" Hiashi lunged forward, but was blocked by the Third. The old man stared him down.

"That's enough, Lord Hiashi, take your daughter and go while I speak to our guest."

"Guest? Your hospitality is lacking, old man." The bed-ridden Gaara drawled derisively. Sarutobi sighed softly.

"Will you hush?"

"No, I like to annoy. Since I'm sealed here, annoying everyone who walks through that door is all I have left, and I must say, your leaf ninja have a very low tolerance level-"

"Oh zip it, you're just very good at poking a sharp stick in everyone's sensitive parts; now let me do my job."

"Are you accusing me of sexual assault? Because I'm a bit young to be going down that road, you dirty old man!"

"That was just an expression, you irritating little boy! Hiashi, get out, this is classified, Hinata, I'm sorry for your treatment at his hands. I hope you get well soon, and I wish that you could stay in the hospital, since your condition is still really serious."

"Th-thank you, Lord Hokage, b-but I'm s-sure I c-can m-m-manage." She bowed humbly, fighting off a coughing fit. Gaara gave hr one more once-over, and watched her leave. He tried to ignore the sense of loneliness washing over him from her departure.

"Now then, young man, tell me about the sound ninja you're working with."

"Hn, that's new. How about this; they're all crazier than I am, and they don't think before they act. They'll probably get themselves all killed before too long. They have no sense of self-preservation, you see, no common sense, and they think that they're better than they really are."

"What about Hayate?"

"The proctor? He's dead."

"Yes, why? Why was he murdered?"

"Probably stuck his nose where it didn't belong, I don't really care, because I'm not the one who did it. If I did, you would never have found the body." His deadpan tone was infuriating and chilling. This boy was a killing machine, a one-ninja army. His cold, ruthless behavior and tactics coupled with his high intelligence and skill made him a force to contend with. The vast majority of tacticians, no matter how skilled, wouldn't be able to out-maneuver him, simply because they couldn't predict his behavior. The old rules of morality didn't apply to him, nor did any set core of values. He didn't care who got hurt or killed in the process of completing his missions, which made him extremely difficult to prepare against or even fight off. Yet, for those same reasons, it made him an exceptional shinobi, especially when it came to assassinations. It was a rare breed that would kill anyone that they were assigned to kill, which made him an invaluable double-edged sword. Like all demon vessels, you had to earn his loyalty, something that the Kazekage didn't understand. Perhaps, if he could just sway him to his side, his way of thinking, Sarutobi could gain an invaluable ally.

"You do realize that your father is denying your very existence, right? I hope that you also realize that he is planning on giving you to Orochimaru."

"Of course I do, but your not exactly innocent either, old man. You seek to manipulate me as well. Try a different angle."

"Very well, in exchange for your loyalty, I will give you a new home here in the Leaf Village."

"Oh please, for all you know I'll be dead in a few days."

"You don't act like it."

"Even so, why on earth would I want to stay here? This place is full of useless weaklings. Besides, you can promise all you want, but you can't control how your subjects really feel. They hate my kind, and would inevitably try to kill me, which would mean that I would kill them. This would start a bloodbath. Why on earth would you want that?" now he was just perplexed. What was this old man thinking? Did he even think at all? What could possibly be worth a potential blood bath in his village? Well, he wasn't falling for this pathetic attempt at manipulation.

"Well, think about it, Lord Gaara. When you come to a decision, I'll be waiting." The Third withdrew, and Gaara was, once again, left alone. He sighed softly, and coughed up some more blood. Now his sigh turned to one of exasperation as a tendril of sand whisked the crimson drops from his lips and chin. His bones ached, and felt like they were splitting in half, yet he refused to cry out.

A few hours later, he supposed, there were noises from the next room. He recognized the voices from his team and the inept ANBU.

"You tell us what you know about the plague!"

"Uh, that it's bad?" Kankuro ventured to guess. Gaara choked back a snicker.

"Quit beating around the bush! Tell us what you know!"

"What bush? I did tell you what I know! Oh! Wait a second! It's caused by a virus!" a slapping sound was heard, "Ow! What the hell Temari?!"

"You're an idiot! It's caused by a bacteria carried by fleas on rodents! Where were you during that particular class?!"

"I don't know, taking a dump?"

"If you don't straighten up, I'll sic Gaara on you, and don't you think I won't!" At this he rolled his eyes. Like he'd ever go along with that!

"You're bluffing! Besides, that psycho's locked up somewhere, hopefully heavily medicated and restrained. I hope he stays that way, and we can go home to a nice, normal family life. Who knows, maybe dad will give us a medal or something."

"Oh, will you zip it?! Let me do the talking for once! Sir, I assume this is about Gaara's condition?"

"Yes, what do you know?"

"Not much, just that he was fine until he went spastic at the finals. Is he dead yet?"

"Unfortunately no, he claims to have the plague."

"So, he will die?"

"Given how serious his symptoms are, most likely, yes."

"Good. Well, since we don't know anything, can we go now?"

"After we run some tests, we want to make sure you don't have it."

"Does that mean we get suckers?"

"What?"

"Kankuro, shut up!"

"What? All the other patients get suckers, so I want one too!"

"You're too old for a sucker!"

"No I'm not Temari! Don't be such a hard-ass!"

"Keep it up and you'll find your head in that toilet over there!"

"Now, now, you two, calm down…"

"Zip it, you! I'm dealing with my stupid little brother!"

"Yeah! Go bug someone else!"

"WILL YOU SHUT UP?! I'M IN THE ANBU BLACK OPPS, YOU LITTLE TROLLS! YOU WILL RESPECT ME AND LISTEN WHEN I SPEAK!"

"Sheesh, no need to go crazy…"

"Yeah, really…"

Gaara snickered, they were such wimps! Just because the guy has a set of lungs didn't make him invincible! Besides, they were actually taking the idiot seriously, even though he clearly didn't have a clue about the plague either. He sighed irritably. He wasn't really surprised by his siblings' reactions. He had known about the way they felt about him for years, and he hadn't bothered to disguise his hatred of them. He longed to kill them, but they had been useful little pawns, and had been easy to pump for information, so that he knew about assassination attempts ahead of time. But now it seemed that their usefulness had worn out.

His head hurt, especially his eyes. His eyes felt like they were changing, and his sight was becoming different. The room-the colors were changing, no that's not right, everything was giving off a strange haze of some sort. And there were strange lights showing through the wall. Soft lights that pulsed as if alive, and they moved. Some slowly, others swiftly, and he could hear voices associated with them, like they were speaking. What the-were those people?! What the hell was going on?!

**It has begun, my child, you are acquiring new senses. This is the aura sense, where you can sense the auras of living things. Eventually you will be able to control it, or "turn it off," if you will, but for now, it will replace your sense of sight. Negative space is black, as you can see. Your aura is weaker than it should be, but it pulses red and black. Don't be afraid.**

_I'm not afraid, I'm just confused. Just how many new senses will I be acquiring?_

**Many, but the most obvious is the aura sense. **

_It's beautiful, in a strange way. I feel like I can read personalities when I see these auras._

**In a way, you can, my child.**

_Ah, that can be useful, if I ever get out of here._

**Soon, you will be too strong for these seals to contain. Then you can go wherever you want. Patience, my little one, I know it hurts, but it will make you strong, very strong. Your newfound power will make your old self seem like a weakling in comparison, my child.**

_Yes, I know. I won't give them the satisfaction of knowing that I'm in pain anyway. I have my standards and dignity._

**Such a proud son, my child, so proud, but so deserving.**

Shukaku always flattered him, mostly because he held him in such high esteem. He really couldn't imagine a better container, a better child for him to take care of, such a strong, bright child, so gifted and delightful. Even his temperament was endearing. The only thing lacking was a good companion for him. He thought that one little girl would be a nice fit, yes, undoubtedly. Her blood was sweet, a petite little beauty, with a good disposition. Nice and submissive, sweet, and so well mannered, practically perfect. She'd grow up to be quite the little beauty.

Gaara's eyes had changed. So much so that the next nurse who came in ran out screaming about demons and monsters. The whites had turned black, the irises gold, and the pupils black stars. He blinked slowly. What an inconsiderate sissy, really, he hadn't even done anything, yet, to make her carry on so. He sighed. He sort of missed the girl-Hinata?-since he was so bored. At least she had been fun to piss with. He sighed softly. He was alone again, she had left him all alone. Why? Why did he deserve to be left in his solitary hell?


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

It was morning, and the only reason he knew this was due to the fact that he could hear more people in the hall outside of his room. He clenched his jaw as a wave of pain swept through him. That had been happening more frequently lately. The girl was gone, taken from him yesterday by that old fool with a cane. Who did that Hyuuga think he is, to steal what rightfully belonged to him?! She was his property, his plaything, not that weakling's! Gaara growled and jerked at his restraints again. Bastard, he'd show him what happened to thieves in Suna! He'd break every bone in his hands and cut off his feet. He'd tie him up to a wooden post and whip him until the flesh was torn from his back and the blood flowed like a river before branding his forehead. He'd rip out his eyes and feed them to him before cutting out his tongue and throwing it to the dogs. After that he'd throw him on the streets, in a gutter, to beg for the rest of his days. All in all, he was going easy on him.

Of course, the girl, Hinata, would have to be punished too, for leaving so willingly with him, but Gaara wasn't sure just how yet. If they were older he'd chain her to his bed and have her at his mercy for the entire night. However, they were too young for that, so he'd have to think of something else. Perhaps he should chain her in a room, just skip the sex, after all, she might not understand that she was his. Yes, that would be better; he'd force her to accept him as her master, that she was his and his alone. He'd tear her mind apart and make her so terrified of his displeasure that she would stay with him. Since he could not have the love of others, and her love was beyond his reach, he would have her delicious fear. He smiled wryly, a cruel twisting of his lips.

But first he had to finish this change, this transformation, and get out of here. A yellow aura walked down the hall, shining through the wall. He hated yellow orange was next, then a strange pinkish color. He hated pink and orange too. In fact, he hated them all, and his head was throbbing. He was forming some sort of diabolical plan to get the nurses to panic and evacuate the hospital when something caught his eye. It was a beautiful aura, like a glistening white opal, shimmering with all sorts of colors that shifted constantly. Lavenders and pale blues swirled slowly and gently. For once, he was looking at a beautiful aura. The aura knocked timidly on his door. No, wait, the person was knocking on his door; the aura was just all that he was seeing. He snorted in disdain.

"You know damn well that I can't open the damn door, so get your idiot self in here already and stop that racket!" he distinctly heard Shukaku chuckle in the back of his mind. Well, that was just fine; he'd carp at him later. The aura cautiously opened the door and hesitantly entered the prison-er room.

"Ah, um, h-hello, G-G-Gaara." What the hell, she came back?! What on earth would make her come back?!

"That's 'Lord Gaara,' little girl, don't be rude." He glared at her harshly. She gasped and quickly tried to redeem herself. She had no idea that he was royalty! Well, the fact that his father was Kazekage should have clued her in, since the family of the leader of Sunagokur was considered royalty, much like the feudal lord there. She had just made a major oops.

"Ah, u-um, s-s-sorry, I d-d-didn't r-r-realize, s-s-so, um, h-h-hello, L-L-L-Lord G-Gaara." He bit back a smirk. She was just so much fun to piss with! She was so jittery and it was a delightful game, but something bothered him.

"What are you doing here, little girl? You know this is a restricted area, and little gennin like you don't have the proper clearance. You could be killed, you idiot. Why throw your life away?"

"A-Ah, w-well, L-L-Lord H-Hokage gr-granted m-m-me access t-to y-your r-room s-so I c-c-can v-v-visit y-y-you, s-s-s-so, h-h-here I a-am." Hinata twiddled her fingers nervously, although all he could see was her beautiful aura, a shimmering opal glow. He narrowed his eyes. It was a unique aura, so very different from the other pathetic rodents roaming the halls. This little mouse was different, special, and his. When he got out of here, he would claim her. Not only was her blood so deliciously exquisite, her aura was a work of art, and she would be a constant pleasure, he was sure. But first, of course, he would have to break her. He would have to make her see that she was his property, his toy, and nothing more. She meant nothing more to him. However, she had broken a rule, well; it seemed like a rule that she and her fellow rodents followed. They were never to associate with a demon vessel more than strictly necessary; and even then reluctantly. Yet, she had gone out of her way to see him. Why?

It didn't matter, because at the moment her presence was grating on his nerves. He glared at her, and growled softly.

"Get lost, I don't want you here." She stiffened, but then bowed slightly to him.

"I-I'm sorry, I d-didn't mean to b-be a b-bother. G-Goodbye." She exited the room, shutting the door softly behind her. He caught the scent of her tears on the slight breeze from the door, and tried to quell the sudden surge of loneliness.

Shukaku sighed in frustration. The child didn't get it, and he didn't dare interfere with the process. That would make Gaara fell pressured to socialize, which would make him resist even more, perhaps even going so far as to kill the girl. Shukaku didn't want that, not at all. The girl was too valuable. She was the best option for companionship, and, if things went well, would be an ideal mate in a few years or so. If only his stubborn child could see that.

Gaara was right to build a wall around him; to lock away his heart and distance himself from others. He had been hurt so badly and so many times by others, who only saw him as a tool, a weapon, a monster. He hoped the girl would understand that and be patient with him.

Yet progress was being made, albeit slowly. Gaara refused to have any feelings of fondness for her creep in his heart, yet he did see her as his. This meant that he found her desirable, and he was already extremely possessive, and would go to great lengths to have her. This may pave the way for other emotions and attachments to worm their way into him. He was also recognizing the longing for companionship, and how bereft he felt without the little female called Hinata. This was good. The little female was kind and patient and Shukaku hoped that she would have the strength to get him to unlock his heart and learn how to form a bond with another person. Perhaps she could even heal those festering wounds in his heart.

The next day she visited him again, stammering her greeting to him, enduring his verbal barbs, and remaining passive even when he barked at her to leave again. Again, he felt the pain of being alone.

The day after that was a repeat of the first two, Hinata knocked politely before entering and endured his painful insults silently before he ordered her out again. Again, he caught the scent of her tears even if she didn't make a sound, and again he felt bereft and isolated when she left.

For over a month the cycle continued. She came in every day, not missing a beat, and she always suffered his anger and jabs in silence, never once defending herself or lashing back. Every day he ordered her out, and every day he felt so alone and lost when she left. He also felt slightly guilty about making her cry so often, but he chalked it up to his condition.

This day was no different, it seemed. A gentle tap on the door, a growled acknowledgement of her presence, and she carefully entered, shutting the door softly behind her. She bowed slightly, stammering out her greeting.

"A-ah, h-hello L-L-L-Lord G-G-G-Gaara."

"Still being a bother, eh? Why don't you just go burn in-" a spasm of coughing cut him off, and blood flecked his lips. She gasped softly, but she snatched up a clean white cloth. She moved in closer, and reached to dab the blood from his lips. His eyes blazed, and a tendril of sand slapped her hand away. She cried out and clutched her hand close to her, tears dripping from her cheeks.

"Little rat, I can do it myself," he hissed angrily as a tendril of sand dabbed the blood away. He hated being touched, no matter what the case. Besides, he considered it rude of her to try and approach him without permission. Persistent little wretch.

"Get out, you sniveling worm. Go bug someone else!" She flinched, and slowly turned to leave, tears dripping from her cheeks. She had to open the door with her left hand, and she fumbled a bit, but managed to open it.

"Wait." She paused. He didn't want her to leave just yet, not without finding out why she kept coming back here every day, for over a month. His eyes narrowed slightly.

"Turn around, girl." It was all too easy for someone to lie when their back was to him, but another thing entirely when his gaze pierced them.

"Y-Yes, L-Lord G-Gaara?" she whispered softly, gritting her teeth against the pain in her hand. He had whacked her really hard, so hard that a bone might be cracked from the force of it.

"Why? Why do you keep coming back here? Why?"

Ah yes, if you read the earlier version of this chapter, I am so sorry for the errors in spelling and such. When I submitted this chapter to the sight, I had forgotten to use spell check on it. I realized my error when I went to print it for my records. I am so sorry for that.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

"I d-don't understand, w-hat do y-you m-mean?"

"What is there to understand? I want to know why you keep coming here. What do you want?" his eyes narrowed in suspicion, the golden stars glinting slightly.

"I d-don't w-want a-anything…"

"Liar. You want something. No one comes to me without seeking some way to manipulate me for their own ends. You play a dangerous game, little girl, and it may cost you more than your life. Do not test me, I will destroy you. Now, what do you want? Why do you keep coming here?" his voice held a savage undertone, full of hatred and anger. She flinched at his accusatory tone.

"I-I j-just w-wanted t-to ease y-your boredom. I-I d-don't th-think that y-you're as e-e-evil as th-they s-say you are, L-Lord Gaara. I was just t-trying to m-make y-you feel a l-little b-b-better." She looked down and found an interesting part of the floor to examine.

"I'm not as evil as they say I am? Well, what led you to that conclusion, little girl?" an odd tone accented his voice, one that she couldn't readily identify, which made her a little nervous. It was best to not irritate a demon, especially a temperamental one like him. She had better tread cautiously.

"W-well, m-m-most p-people a-are very c-c-cruel to d-demon v-vessels, and I-I'm s-sure y-you weren't a-an exception, so y-you h-had t-t-to b-be a l-little m-m-mean, j-just t-to survive…" man that floor was interesting, she couldn't tear her eyes away from it.

"Hn, that's the first time I've ever heard that." He mused. Such a strange girl, he'd certainly never encountered anything like her before so patient and kind, no matter what he did to her. What was more, she was actually trying to see things from his point of view.

"W-well, th-that's wh-what I th-think, anyway, b-but your b-brother's mean!" she piped out in her songbird voice. He looked at her in confusion.

"Come again?"

"Well, h-he is! He's w-worse than y-you a-are!"

"Now, you're going to have to explain that to me." He was confused. Everyone liked his brother, well, except for him, and the fox, but everyone else that was around their age liked him.

"You're mean b-because y-you have to be, b-but he's mean because he w-wants to be. Y-you n-never really had a ch-choice, but h-he does." She risked a glance at him. His face was a blank though, so she wasn't sure why she bothered. Suddenly a dry, throaty sound began to emerge from him, surprising her. He was chuckling, and that chuckle was turning into laughter. She smiled softly and pulled a chair up to the bed and sat down beside him.

The next day she brought a book with her. She shuffled her feet nervously, but decided to take the plunge.

"I w-wasn't sure what kind of stories that you liked, but I figured that it p-probably w-wouldn't b-be romance, a-and I didn't r-really h-have any others beside th-this one, s-so I brought it in c-case y-you w-would like me t-to read it f-for you."

"That has to be some kind of record for you."

"Wh-what is?"

"That last sentence you didn't stutter nearly as much as you usually do." She flushed and began to mumble some sort of apology.

"Relax, I'm teasing. What's the book about?"

"It's s-sort of a c-cross b-between m-m-m-mystery, comedy, a-and a l-little bit of d-drama. It's my f-favorite. M-most of my b-books are o-on medicinal herbs a-and n-ninja manuals. M-my father hates f-f-frivolous th-things, and I-I-if h-h-he knew th-that I h-had this, he'd p-probably k-kill me, s-so could I l-leave it h-here?" he jerked his head in the direction of his gourd

"No one will look there, Hinata, so put it there when you're done." She smiled and thanked him, and began to read the book, titled Mr. Monk and the Blue Flu. (This is a real book. If you're a fan of the Monk series, you might like it. It's based on the TV series, and is written by Lee Goldberg.) Gaara then learned two very important things. One, that he liked this Monk, however disturbing the similarities between him and the character were, and two, that Hinata's voice was a very soothing thing, so soft and gentle. It made him forget the pain and his surroundings for a time. She was growing on him, fast. There was just something about her that was able to worm its way through even the most guarded of hearts, even his. It disturbed and delighted him. She was going to make a wonderful little pet, one that he would be his little secret, and his alone.

Soon enough she began to eat her meals in his room. She had offered to help him eat, but he declined each time.

"W-why w-won't you eat? I'm n-not g-going to t-tell a-anyone th-that you needed h-h-help…" she poked her fingers together.

"I can't eat, my little Hinata. My body won't keep it down, so I'll either choke on my vomit, or it will splatter all over my front. With my luck it will be both, and I have no desire to be covered in my own vomit for an indefinite period of time, since these inconsiderate fools won't even unchain me to let me take a damn shower. I really want one too," he grumbled the last bit. Sure his sand kept him fairly clean, whisking away any sweat and blood, but his skin was still so damn oily and itchy from being chained to a bed twenty-four seven for- just how long has it been? Much more than a month, but how long was it? Hinata had taken to wearing baggy sweaters, or at least bringing an extra with her, so it must be nearing autumn, but he couldn't be certain. That meant that the sandstorms in Suna would be growing increasingly violent, prolonged, and would be happening more frequently. Sand twisters would also be forming. They were worse than a regular tornado, far worse. A tornado or a twister was basically a rotating column of air, caused when two opposing streams of wind ran into each other and twisted into the deadly funnel. In most cases, tornadoes occurred in super cells, where the warm wind collided with the cold wind higher in the sky, or something like that, anyway. He wasn't an expert on weather, all he knew was that the same thing happened in the desert, minus the storms. There really was no warning when the sand twister would strike, or how large it would be. Of course, he knew, but he wasn't inclined to tell anyone, since they would never listen to him and they would blame the storms on him anyway. Not that he couldn't summon a storm, but why bother unless it was a battle situation or he needed to go somewhere fast?

He missed the sand twisters though. They were beautiful, and a lot of fun to ride around in. feeling the fierce, wind-driven sand during the storms caress his skin was another thing he missed. The desert would never harm him in any way, indeed, it had provided for him when no one else would, especially during the times when everyone had been intent on poisoning him. The desert had summoned her cacti, her creatures, and her thorny plants and other succulents, as well as revealing to him little springs with cold, clean water tasting faintly of the minerals surrounding it. He wanted to go home, and soon, he missed the desert too much. He was certain that she would approve of his little companion, even if she wouldn't go out of her way to be gentle with Hinata.

"Ah, um, L-lord Gaara? Are y-you a-a-a-alright?" she piped up, bringing him back to his prison.

"Gaara," he murmured softly. She blinked, confused.

"Just Gaara, Hinata, even if I enjoy the way you say my title," he purred softly, making her blush. Hah! Looks like the fox was getting a little competition from a raccoon with an attitude! Gaara was very pleased with himself; she smiled softly, content with her eccentric companion. Oh yes, he was a bad boy, an extremely BAD bad boy, but he wasn't the horrible monster that everyone made him out to be. He was dark, handsome, and his voice was beguiling. He was quick-witted, had an intriguing sense of humor, and his keen intellect made for great conversation, if he was so inclined at the moment. Even when he was being snarky and temperamental he was attractive.

Yes, she liked him, a lot, but that wasn't to say tat she was blind to his homicidal, sadistic aspects, but really, what did anyone have the right to expect when you threw anyone into circumstances like his? Naruto had been lucky, really. He had Iruka, and had him from almost the beginning. Gaara had no one, and something even worse had happened to him, she knew it. He just didn't talk about it, and it wasn't her place to pry. Don't jab a sleeping tiger with a stick, or else you'll get maimed, and that was if you got lucky. It was a lesson that some of the others should learn.

"I want a shower so bad," he sighed in longing. She looked at him, and began to giggle after several moments. He looked at her in confusion.

"What? I do, I've been stuck in this wretched room, chained to this damn mattress, and sealed by those stupid chakra barriers for months, so what is so funny about being deprived of a shower?"

"N-nothing, it's j-just th-th-that y-you u-usually d-d-d-d-don't say r-random th-things l-l-l-like th-th-th-that. I d-d-d-d-didn't mean t-t-t-t-to o-offend y-you."

"Little mouse, I'll have you know that I never say random things! It wasn't random at all!" he squawked indignantly.

"W-w-well, y-y-you came off a l-little r-r-random…"

"I did not!"

"Y-yes y-y-you did…"

"No I didn't, you just have no sense, you little finch!"

"I l-like f-finches, th-they make m-me h-h-happy…"

"That's because they're all crack heads, like you! They're always so damn happy, it's absurd!"

"Finches a-a-aren't o-o-on c-c-crack, th-they are j-j-just h-happy b-b-birds."

"Defiant finch! You're lucky that I'm handcuffed, or I'd so pluck your ass!"

She gave him a quizzical look, then smiled at him.

"W-well, th-that's a n-n-new one. I d-don't th-think I've ever b-b-been th-threatened w-with b-being p-p-plucked before." Gaara looked rather smug.

"I know, aren't I great?" he coughed lightly, but still kept his smug expression.

"Th-the best."

"I know."

"And th-th m-most e-e-egotistical."

"No, just very self-aware, especially when it comes to my many talents and skills." A definite smirk graced his lips now, and she giggled again.

Hinata reached into her pocket after a moment and pulled out a soft cloth. She dampened it with some water, then gently dabbed his forehead with it. He closed his eyes, liking the sensation despite his general hatred of physical contact.

"Sh-shall I c-continue r-reading?"

"If you want, my little finch. You know something? It'd be a cinch to pinch the finch even when threatened with being lynched by the finch, since the finch couldn't move an inch after being pinched."

"N-now wh-who's the c-crack head?"

"Pipe down and read, you pinched finch."

"I can't d-do b-both y-you kn-know."

"If you keep it up, I shall lynch the pinched finch, even if the pinched finch inches away, it'll be a cinch for the lynching pincher of the finch." Hinata couldn't help but to giggle, and she opened the book to read.


	7. Chapter 7

Wow, it has been a while, hasn't it? Let's get started, then, shall we?

Chapter Seven

Gaara fidgeted restlessly, and tried to ignore the pounding in his temples and eyes. His inky eyes closed briefly, but flicked open again, peering intently at the door. His Hinata was late. He wondered what was keeping her. It had better not be that dick-weed of a father. He growled at the orange aura that paused by his door, sending the nurse scurrying away.

He hated her father almost as much as he hated his own. He demanded so much from little Hinata, yet had nothing decent to say to her, ever. Useless, worthless pig, Gaara would love to roast him over an open fire, but then Hinata would probably be a little upset at him, which was such a shame.

It was of no concern, though, he would have her, and soon. As soon as this transformation was complete, he would escape this wretched hellhole, and take her with him, and she would be his forever more. He would never let her go, ever. He smiled in satisfaction as a familiar aura came to his door, and knocked oh so politely.

"Come in, my Hinata," he purred warmly from his bed, smiling softly at her as she hurried in. The aura that surrounded her was so lovely, soft and inviting. It was the only aura suitable for her, a soft, opalescent color that shifted and swirled gently around her body, pulsing with her heartbeat. Such a pretty little thing, his Hinata was.

"A-ah, um, I-I-I'm sorry th-that I'm l-late, G-Gaara, I h-h-had to g-get s-some more b-b-b-books, a-and my f-father w-w-wouldn't l-let me leave-"

"You value his opinion too much, Hinata. His faulty judgement is eating you from the inside out, my little dove," his voice was harsh at first, but had softened. He didn't want to make her any more miserable.

"But, h-he's m-m-m-my f-father, I c-c-can't just ig-ignore h-h-him! I-"

"Stop that," he deadpanned, startling her. His gaze softened slightly, black and gold orbs gently resting on her soft features. Such a soft creature should've never become a ninja; the brutal missions that lay ahead would destroy her from the inside, and for what? For the prevention of a blemish on the Hyuuga main branch's records? There were other ways that a ninja could become great, such as espionage or medical training, ways that would not force her to kill again and again in cold blood.

"Have you ever considered becoming a different sort of ninja, Hinata?"

"W-what do y-y-you mean?" she sounded alarmed.

"I've studied your clan, Hinata, and its fighting techniques. You are most often deployed as assassins. You are not cut out for that sort of job, Hinata." Seeing her wounded expression, he hastened to elaborate. "It's not about skill, you have the ability. One doesn't need to be powerful to be an assassin, you need technique and strategy, and more than anything, the stomach for it. You don't have the heart of a killer, Hinata, you won't be able to kill on command." She shrank into herself at his words; his words had wounded her deeply.

"There are other paths to becoming a great shinobi, Hinata. You would excel at espionage; your keen eyes would allow you to observe an enemy from a great distance, with him totally unaware of your presence. You also have an uncanny ability to move around unnoticed by anyone, which would enable you to obtain valuable information that no one else would be able to.

"Then, of course, is the path that I think you have the greatest potential in. You have an incredible gift when it comes to healing, you know. You have the potential to become a legend. This path in particular would bring about great respect and honor to you. Why not train in one of these paths? I'm certain that you'll be much happier if you do," his voice was soft, gentle, and encouraging. She looked up at him hopefully, seeing for the first time what she had been striving all of her life for: approval. This powerful ninja who could, if he so desired to, squash her like a bug approved of her. Of all of the people in the world, it was the homicidal, antisocial psycho that approved of her.

Well, less of a psycho and more of a homicidal grump. She smiled then, beaming at him. He blinked in surprise. He hadn't ever really made anyone smile before, not like that. It was a nice feeling.

He coughed once lightly, then asked, "what books do you have today?" she straightened up a bit, and pulled over a chair while she explained.

"Um, s-s-s-some more Monk books, and some about p-p-p-popular m-m-mythology, I-I-I- thought that y-y-y-you might find them interesting." He perked up a bit, and decided against mentioning that her stuttering was fading away, even as they spoke. When she read to him, she didn't stutter at all. She really was his little creature, his Hinata. The knowledge was most satisfying, and he closed his eyes in contentment to her soft voice, allowing it to lull him into a trance-like state.

The next day proceeded like the one before, with his companion reading to him about the latest adventures of Monk, and they were enjoying themselves, until, that is, the ANBU burst in. Gaara glared at them, his black eyes making them shudder.

"Don't you losers ever knock? How rude of you, just barging in here like that!"

"Shut up, brat!"

"Make me, numb nuts!" Hinata was puzzled; just what on earth did Gaara mean by that? The only things she could think of were cold peanuts or almonds, but that didn't make any sense!

Gaara smirked, not only was he annoying his unwelcome guests, but Hinata was thoroughly confused. She was so innocent; so many little comments and words went right over her head, with her none the wiser. He would have to keep an eye on her, but it was adorable and endearing.

"You little bastard!" the ninja in the middle lunged at him, but was held back by the other two. Gaara laughed at him, and continued to needle him.

"Such a pathetic excuse for a ninja! Why, I think an old lady could beat the shit out of you!"

"G-G-G-Gaara! I-it's not polite t-t-t-t-to sw-sw-swear!" Hinata reprimanded him in an alarmed voice. It didn't do any good.

"Shit, damn, hell, fuck, bitch, mother-fucker; take your pick, little lady. I've got more." He sounded proud, and Hinata went scarlet from embarrassment. The very idea that there was more made her want to crawl in a little hole and never come out. Gaara smirked; she was so cute when she blushed!

"ENOUGH! YOU, YOU LITTLE FUCKER, YOU TELL US WHAT DISEASE YOU HAVE OR ELSE I'LL HAVE YOUR SIBLINGS EXECUTED!"

"Go for it, see if I care, you shit-eating moronic piss-on!" the ANBU choked with rage at his insult, and lunged at him again, only to be held back by his peers.

"YOU LITTLE SON OF A BITCH-" he spluttered indignantly, but Gaara cut him off.

"Of course, that's a guaranteeing a war with my village, now, isn't it? You're such a dumb ass!" he snickered at him, enjoying the trouble that he was causing. These buffoons were cheap entertainment.

"However, I'm feeling charitable at the moment, so I will tell you. I have ebola, now run along and stop bothering me." He made shoeing motions as best as he could with one of his hands, being restrained and all. The ANBU stiffened in alarm, and tried to bolt out of the door as fast as their legs could carry them. Hinata started after them.

"W-wait! Y-y-y-you've got it a-a-a-all wrong-"

"Silence! You must remain in here! You've been exposed!"

"B-but-"

"But nothing! Stay put!"

"But-"

"Don't worry, we'll have food delivered to you. We can't risk exposure to anyone else!"

"B-but-"

"Stay!" and with that they slammed the door. She sighed softly in frustration.

"But he doesn't have ebola, the symptoms are all wrong." She grumbled at the non-responsive door. Gaara snickered, and she turned back to him.

"You d-d-don't really h-h-h-have ebola, do y-y-you? B-because the s-s-symptoms d-d-don't match." At that he roared in laughter, making her shake her head and sigh.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

Hinata sighed as the ANBU entered the room in full HAZMAT gear. She could understand Gaara's irritation with them, and his inability to treat them like intelligent human beings. Didn't they know how to research things like this?

"Hinata Hyuuga, we have your meal. We also need a blood sample for testing."

"What for? She clearly doesn't have it; else she'd be dead by now. It's been well over a month, you know. If you wanted to know if she had it, you should've tested her sooner, dumb ass!" Gaara growled furiously. They ignored him, and advanced on the girl, who instinctively backed up a step. The leader brandished a rather large needle, making her eyes go wide in shock. Why was it so big? The one the nurses had used to take blood had been much smaller!

Without warning, they leapt on her and brutally pinned the small girl to the floor, viciously jabbing the needle in her arm, ignoring her cry of pain and protest. Gaara snarled and strained against the restraints, furious that anyone would dare harm _his _Hinata. As they left with their sample, not even bothering to help her to her feet, they shuddered at the obvious malice in Gaara's eyes. They would pay, he would see to it.

"Are you alright?" he murmured as she struggled to her feet, clutching her arm. She nodded shakily, coming over to sit by him once more. He motioned her closer.

"Let me see, Hinata," he sighed softly, opening one of his shackled hands. She briefly hesitated, then put her wrist in his hand. He rolled his eyes and used a tendril of sand to tug her a little closer, examining the angry, swollen patch of skin of her elbow. It was already a nasty red-violet color; they had pierced the vein through and through. He growled angrily. Oh yes, they would pay.

"P-p-perhaps I sh-sh-should get b-back to r-r-reading," she stammered softly, hoping to distract him from any thoughts of vengeance and anger. It was hopeless, she knew that from experience, but she tried just the same. She didn't like it when he was angry, and she had never seen him so enraged.

"Yes, my Hinata, read some more. Go on now, make your futile attempts to distract me from my anger, like you always do. Try to soothe my demon with your soft voice, we both know that it's pointless. I won't rest easy until they pay for what they've done," his voice was sharp, and she flinched from him. He looked at her, and his voice softened.

"I don't like seeing you hurt, my little one, especially when your pain is meaningless except to torment me. I will not stand idly by when the only person I care about is harmed right in front of me. They will be punished," he hissed the last bit between clenched teeth. An awkward silence followed, before she summoned up the nerve to speak again.

"S-so, d-do y-y-you w-want me t-to con-continue to r-read, or n-not?" had it been anyone else, he would've been offended, since the question would've been accompanied by a derisive, sarcastic tone. But it was Hinata, and her voice was just so hesitant, he flicked his gaze over her again, and a rare half smile flickered across his lips. She was just so adorable, with those big lavender eyes, and that blush. So cute, and she was all his.

"Yes, go ahead, my little missy, I like your voice." She nodded shakily, and picked up her book, and started the next chapter. Soon after, she unfolded her blanket, set out her pillow, and went to sleep.

It was still dark when she was awakened by his gasp of pain. She bolted up to see what was the matter.

"Gaara? Gaara! Wh-what's wrong?" she cried as she ran over to him. He was gasping, gagging, and convulsing violently. His sand tendrils lashed about wildly, and his eyes had rolled up in his skull. Hinata screamed for help as she tried to stabilize his head, not wanting him to smack against the metal bars in the tiny bed. Blood was pouring from his mouth, coughed up from his lungs, which seemed to fill up again almost immediately.

The nurses barged in and shoved her roughly out of the way, but stopped in their tracks and just stared at him. Hot on their heals came a variety of medic nin and doctors. They watched in horror as his convulsions violently intensified, until he was at last still, an unbroken high pitched sound emitting from his monitor. His heart had stopped.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

Gaara was surrounded by a sea of sand and a hazy darkness. The sand pitched and rolled like waves on an ocean, occasionally revealing pools of blood and broken bodies, only to sweep over them once again and conceal them within the depths. The wind howled, whipping the dunes into a frenzied, churning mass of waves, but Gaara paid them no mind. Above him the full moon hung low in the sky, along with the other heavenly bodies. Saturn's rings almost seemed to touch it, and Venus hovered nearby. Across the vast inky expanse lie Jupiter, Neptune, and the other planets, even tiny Pluto. The inky expanses between the heavenly bodies were filled with constellations and nebulae, resulting in a breathtaking display that softly shimmered. Anyone else would've openly gawked at the sky, that is, if they managed to find their footing long enough to actually be able to look up.

Gaara, however, ignored it as he strode swiftly to his destination. Shukaku had brought him here for a reason, and he needed to find out why. It had been a while since he had brought him to their world. His gaze never once left the dark foreboding area ahead, not even to watch his footing. The sand, despite its wild pitching and rolling, wouldn't dare to trip him.

As he walked he pondered the myriad things that he desperately needed to discuss with his demon, mostly centered on the last few moments before he was taken within himself. His step faltered a bit as the last sensations he remembered came back to him. A wrenching pain and writhing muscles, Hinata's frightened cries, and a stillness in his chest. He stopped then; standing still as the realization came to him. His heart wasn't beating, yet he wasn't dead. After a few moments he resumed his journey, there was nothing he could do about that, his primary concern was Shukaku. His mentor would know what was going on.

Ahead of him loomed a large cage, with a gargantuan shadow locked inside. A collar was attached to Shukaku's neck and the floor of the cage with a large chain. The door was partially open. Shukaku could, if he wanted, charge through the door, which only opened when Gaara was unconscious. When he regained his senses, the chain would snap taut and pull him back into the cage, the door slamming shut.

This situation was unique; most demons were imprisoned within a sealed cage, locked tightly and, hopefully, permanently. However, it hampered their vessel. They could only communicate with their demon rarely, and when they did they were often at odds, the host seeking to control the demon, the demon seeking to be free. Consequently, the host could access only about a third of the demon's power before the cage began to open, and the demon began to take over. If opened too far, the demon would break free, shredding the host, at best simply killing him/her, at worst, rending the soul. Sometimes the demon went so far as to consume the host's spirit, imprisoning it within the demon as an act of revenge.

Shukaku himself had been known for this when it came to his former hosts. In fact, he was exceptionally notorious for shortening the life span of them. He hated them, hated the fact that they tried to control him, used him, and thought of him as little more than a mindless animal. So he slipped through the cage and ate at their psyche, and sent his chakra running through them to destroy their bodies. Whenever he got too close to breaking free, the village leaders trapped the host and pulled him from its body, sealing him in a tea kettle or jar or a clay pot, whatever could hold the bloodstained sand that made transferring him to a new host easier. The bloody cycle continued, until the Fourth Kazekage came along with Chiyo.

For the first time, he was sealed within a fetus, a very young fetus to be exact. The fetus was a young male, and was very nearly killed by the chakra spillover from the demon. His body was simply too young and small, not even fully formed. The infant mortality rate was high among regular demon vessels, their small bodies simply unable to cope with the chakra, let alone a fetus. The Kazekage had almost consigned the village to a death sentence, since if the child died, Shukaku would've been free to ravage the village. But something had held the demon back, a tenderness towards the unborn child. Such a strange thing, affection was, it compelled him to try to save him. So he did the only thing he could do; he altered the child's very DNA, replacing his father's with Shukaku's own, making the infant his child.

However, he couldn't save Gaara's mother, or even speak to his child, since the little kit had been taught to fear him. Yashamaru had filled him with so many terrible lies, as had the vile Kazekage. But he had, on that horrid night, managed to contact his child at last. The grieving Gaara hadn't attempted to flee the demon's whispers, allowing him to instead sweep through him and draw him into their world for a long overdue chat. He comforted his child as best he could, but some wounds couldn't be healed by the demon alone.

The little girl that they found, now, she had changed things. His thoughts were on her as he watched his son stride over to him. Hinata had cleansed those infected wounds with her kindness and patience, her acceptance and affection. Gaara's wounded heart had, at last, begun to heal. It would always bear those scars, but the fact that he was healing cheered Shukaku and gave him hope. It was good that Gaara had a precious person, even if he still needed to figure things out a bit. The homicidal little psycho needed a bit more time to understand and acquire social skills.

Said homicidal little psycho was now staring at him, so Shukaku settled himself down in his cage more comfortably. He chuckled at the glare that Gaara shot at him.

"Why the hell didn't you tell me that I was going to have convulsions and then die? A little warning would've been nice!" he snapped at him.

_**"My apologies, my child, I thought you could handle it."**_

"I can, but-"

_**"You fear that she can't."**_

__"Yes."

_**"She will be fine, and besides, now is not the time to worry about that. You must train like never before now, to master your new power. Prepare yourself, my child, your training begins now." **_Gaara nodded and assumed a battle stance as Shukaku swiped at him with his claw.

He was resting on a dune that was, for the moment, still and solid as a normal dune would be. His eyes were fixed on the sky, hands partially submerged in the sand. He inhaled and exhaled a sigh. The respite from his grueling training was only partially welcome, as unpleasant memories always came flooding back to him. Even now, after five years, he could still hear his Hinata's panicked cries, see those frightened, no, horrified eyes, and cursed himself for leaving her alone and defenseless. Was she even alive after all this time? If she was, could she ever forgive him?

After a moment, he felt the tug of his mentor, and rose to his feet. He walked swiftly to the open cage, where the demon was reclining. Shukaku grinned at him.

_**"What's with the dirty look? Surely you're not still upset over that little missy, are you?"**_

__"What's it to you? Just hurry it up and get to the next exercise! I'm not going through this again!"

_**"So you are still upset over the little missy, that's good. I had feared that you would never be able to make another emotional connection after Yashamaru. You have it bad, don't you?"**_

__"Shut up, you just don't get it, you bastard-"

_**"I have good news for you, then, child, but first you must tell me something. Don't you feel different now? Surely you must have noticed it by now."**_ Gaara paused, and concentrated. Yes, he did feel something, something unusual. For the first time in years, his heart was beating. Shock rocked him to his core, could this mean…? He looked up at Shukaku, eyes wide.

_**"It's time, Gaara." **_Already his world had begun to fade away.

"Wait! You still haven't even told me what the good news is!"

_**"You'll see." **_Shukaku chuckled after him, as he faded away. Gaara cursed at him angrily.

He was stiff, sore, and cold. There was a weight on his chest and stomach, a warm, wet weight that shuddered and shook. Strange noises were in the background, squeaky feet, whispers, murmurs and mutters. Just what was going on? Where was he?

Gaara opened his eyes slowly, blinking them blearily. It was a dim room, but there were people outside it. He could hear them walking and talking to each other in hushed tones. The strong smell of antiseptic stung his nose, and other smells lingered in the air unpleasantly. Wait was he still-a sharp sound interrupted his observations. He looked down to see a familiar, huddled form weeping on his torso. It was Hinata, and she appeared much the same as she had been, so just how much time had really passed? He was still handcuffed to the bed, still in that distasteful hospital gown, and still only twelve, apparently.

"Hinata?" his voice was a croak, but it was enough to get her attention. Shocked lavender eyes gazed at him, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"G-Gaara?"


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

Hinata leaped forward and embraced him fiercely, sobbing anew. It didn't seem to matter that he was covered in blood. Relief swept through him, grief swiftly following. He had made his little one cry. He had to fix this.

Gaara snapped one of the handcuffs and held her to him, shushing her and murmuring soft, comforting words. Apparently, a much shorter period of time had passed here than in his demon's world. He sighed and inhaled her scent, relieved that she was, for the most part, okay. He had worried about her so much.

"I th-th-thought y-you w-w-w-w-were d-d-dead!" she cried out, still sobbing, and he continued to comfort her, not really sure what to do.

"I know; I'm sorry, believe me, if I had known that was going to happen, I would've warned you. I'm so sorry; I worried about you so much." He had not only grown up, he had gone through puberty; after all, five years had passed. He had gotten used to a tall male body and going back to his small twelve-year-old body was really throwing him for a loop.

He continued to soothe her, hating to see her cry. She was the only one who mattered to him in this world, and to hurt her in any way was now anathema to him. That was when he heard the feet pounding in the hall. He jerked her up to him and forced her to look him in the eyes.

"I want you to listen to me, and listen close, you hear me? I will come for you. No matter who stands in my way, no matter how far they take you, no matter how long it takes me; I will come for you!" he said as he pressed his lips in a chaste kiss to hers. Her eyes widened in shock, and she screamed as the three ANBU burst through the door and dragged her away from him. She shrilled his name in panic as they retreated, and he roared his anger.

He could feel the multiple seals flare just before being consumed by the wave of his chakra. The handcuffs and other restraints were no match for his newfound strength and he snapped them easily. Two other ANBU rushed him and he lashed out with his sand, capturing and crushing one as his hand closed on the throat of the other, crushing the spine and windpipe. He let the body drop, and went out through the open door. He needed to find her. Where the hell had they taken his Hinata?

Several nurses tried to stop him in the hall, but he cut them down like a scythe did wheat, and the Jonin and other ANBU fared no better. He had specialized in dealing with opponents like them from the moment he had begun his training under the eyes of his father and Suna's Jonin Council. It was all too easy, and the hospital walls and floors ran red with the blood. Not everyone was killed, not even close. Each and every battle, though brief and simple, took time, and every instant wasted meant that Hinata was farther away.

At the end of that long hallway was a window, which he leaped through, freefalling briefly before landing on the open streets below. His sand armor was more than sufficient against glass shards. The sky was dark; so night had fallen. The question was just how long the sun had been down. The air was cold and crisp, the breeze soft but constant. It was definitely autumn, October perhaps? He had lost track of the days. He was still in his hospital gown, but his sand had reformed itself into his gourd, complete with cork and leather carrying belt. He had forgotten all about his gear and clothing, but his sand hadn't, it was buried deep in his gourd. He narrowed his eyes; that was an amateur's mistake, he knew better than that!

The blood spattered hospital gown was sticky and cumbersome; definitely not made for combat. He should change out of it, get his shoes on at least, but the wind carried the faint scent of Hinata, and he abruptly decided against it. He slung his gourd in place and gave chase. Things changed when someone important was involved, and he had to be grateful that he was as strong as he was, or else this would end very badly indeed.

The streets were dark, and there were trees and wooden fences everywhere. Well, this village was in the middle of the forest after all. Dry leaves blew around on the wind, rustling when they hit something. The trees were all red, brown or yellow, some were bare altogether. There was the scent of burning leaves and wood, and in the middle of the properties of some of the wealthier inhabitants were bonfires with people lounging about. But most people were safely inside their homes; ignorant of the deadly hunt that was taking place.

Gaara skidded to a halt and stood still, listening. He gave a wicked, cruel smile. Those morons were going to pay. Let's see, fences to left and right complete with houses, empty street to the front and back, and two trees diagonally from each other surrounded him. The tree in front held his prey.

"You might as well come out, you moron, I know you're there." A faint rustle from the tree, and the ANBU leaped at him. Gaara spun on the ball of his right foot, his left delivering a brutal kick in his back as he lunged past. The blow sent him flying into a nearby electrical power line, snapping the wood and sending it tumbling down. Live wires whipped wildly through the air, and the lights went out far and wide. Gaara growled in his throat as he picked up the hapless ANBU and flung him across the street. He grabbed him again, jerking him up by his collar.

"Where is she?" he snarled angrily. The ANBU remained silent. A low rumble started in Gaara's chest, and his eyes flashed to his black and gold aura vision. He had almost forgotten it; it was surely a better way of tracking than interrogating an ANBU. While the ones he had encountered thus far were morons, and very likely rookies to the group of special ninja, they were all trained to handle torture or had jutsu placed on them to prevent them from divulging information to enemies.

The vibrant lemon of the ANBU's aura flared up, only to be snuffed out when Gaara crushed the fragile bones in his neck. It wouldn't do to be followed by any enemy, even an idiot like that. Besides, he had the information that he needed. Hinata's scent was mixed with the other idiot ANBU and that of her father and Neji, along with other unknowns. He was fairly certain that she was at the Hyuuga clan mansion. The question was why?

Gaara flitted through a few more streets before coming up to the main gateway to the mansion. Hiashi, he decided, must have a giant stick up his butt, or perhaps the clan in general. Seriously, huge walls anyone? The place was like a frickin' castle. Perhaps the men in the family had tiny penises too, after all, wasn't that the case whenever they had an over-abundance of overly large things? Serious over-compensation, anyone?

Nonetheless, he vaulted effortlessly over the gate and into the grounds, growling low in his throat. They had better not harm so much as a hair on her head. Hinata was _his_, not theirs! His precious one, his only companion, the only one who had ever given a damn about him, and so help him if they hurt her…

The mansion was dark. The décor was plain, and very militaristic, the walls a stark white, which were now gray in the gloom, the furniture stiff, formal, and expensive. Every room had at least one thing that bore the symbols of the clan and the leaf village. The side branch rooms were noted by that strange x-shaped curse mark symbol above the doorway. Yep, sticks shoved way, WAY up their asses. Although, given his situation, who was he to judge?

Moving like a ghost, he continued to follow her scent, but was concerned with the lack of guards. Where was the rest of the clan? Why had none, not a single one, come out to defend their home from him? What was keeping them? Surely at least one of them had their byakugan activated. So where were they?

The room up ahead, it was lit by flickering candles, and a soft murmur was sweeping through it. Well, that answered one question; the entire clan, or at least, the ones that were here in the village, they were all in there. There were symbols on the floor, and at the center, a bound and gagged Hinata was struggling at her father's feet. His fingers were glowing with a green chakra, and suddenly Gaara knew what was going on. They were going to brand her with that damned curse mark that the side branch members were branded with. He growled angrily and charged in; lashing out and hitting her father hard with his sand while he landed in front of her. From the looks of the side branch members, he could say that he hadn't surprised _them _at least.

He knew from the preliminary rounds that there was bad blood between the two branches, and apparently the side branch members hadn't approved of branding Hinata. Indeed, they had let him waltz right in without so much as a peep. The main branch had all been concentrating on the ritual for the curse mark. How interesting.

"Hinata is mine, Hiashi Hyuuga; you will not touch her." Hiashi glared at him angrily.

"She will do as she is told, and will make way for a stronger, superior leader for the clan." He jerked his head in Hanabi's direction, who was busily looking at the floor. Apparently she didn't know what to do, being caught in the middle. Gaara sent Hiashi a death glare.

"Then you die!" he sent his sand swirling toward the clan leader, ready to rend him limb from limb. Hiashi's eyes widened, and he swiftly activated his byakugan, but too late.

"Let's not be too hasty, now." They turned to see a figure step out of the shadows. The Third Hokage.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

"Well, well, look who it is. The glorious Third Hokage. What brings you here? It couldn't be a pang of conscience, now could it?" Gaara was feeling rather snotty at the moment; The Hokage had sent his ANBU after him and his precious Hinata, whose only crime was being kind to a monster like him. Sweet, gentle Hinata, whose own flesh and blood wanted to murder her. That curse mark that they used on their clan was a death sentence in so many ways.

"Yes, I am aware that you don't approve of my actions, Lord Gaara, but I have an idea that I'm sure you would like. Kakashi, Kurenai, free Hinata." They leaped to obey, Kurenai swiftly undoing her bonds while Kakashi stood guard. Gaara glared at him, this one had been responsible for teaching Sasuke. Surely he saw what was in that Uchiha whelp, right? He was as rotten to the core as Gaara, perhaps more so. He babied him too much, and he had a funny feeling that it would come back to bite them all in the ass. What a total shmuck. Gaara used his sand to smack Hiashi on the back of his knees, and then it snatched his feet and yanked forward; landing him on his ass. Gaara gave a smug little smirk, very pleased with himself. If nothing else, it was satisfying, and rather amusing, to knock the prick down a peg or two. So very satisfying.

"I wish to propose a deal, I give you shelter here at the Leaf, in exchange for your support. In other words, I want you to be a Leaf Ninja, a Shinobi that will take on missions that benefit both of our lands. In exchange, you will receive MY support if you should run into any…difficulties. Agreed?" Gaara considered him with narrowed eyes.

"You wish me to commit treason. You wish me to commit treason for an uncertainty. No village wants my kind within it. You wish me to exchange one set of enemies for another, and commit treason on top of it."

"Not so. Technically the plot between Sand and Sound has not come to fruition yet. Technically, we are still allies. You coming to our village would ensure that it stays that way."

"No, not really, it would probably make things worse. A specialist like me doesn't just up and leave a village. No one wants another Orochimaru, or Sasori, or Itachi, or even Zabuza. No, whenever a high-ranking Shinobi breaks from the village he serves, disaster always strikes. Why should I be any different? Tell me why I should be any different in their eyes?"

"If you were to discover a subplot with Orochimaru betraying your village, it would suddenly become necessary to have a liaison between our villages, especially one that could take care of himself, since it would be very dangerous…"

"I've already considered that possibility. It is inevitable that he will betray us. He doesn't understand the meaning of the word 'loyalty,' and the only question would be when and how. I've snooped to an extent, but it's difficult to find the time and a secluded location to take one of his underlings and interrogate him until he spills. Kabuto especially, that little weasel keeps slipping away, and he's the one I need. Your people are entirely too nosey for their own good!"

"You would have the Leaf's complete support, so long as you keep me appraised. You and Hinata-yes, Lord Hiashi, I'm placing Hinata under his care- will be given a place to stay; in fact the apartment will be two doors down from Naruto's. It will be completely stocked with food and medical supplies, along with basic kitchen utensils. Inside the bathroom you will find any toiletries that you need as well, along with sleeping mats and blankets in the main room. Anything else you will have to fend for yourself. Kakashi, Kurenai, and Jiraiya will be your go-between for the rest of the Shinobi from our village, and I will trust you to handle things with your village. Do we have a deal?" Gaara considered, and then countered.

"If necessary, I want Ibiki to aid me in interrogations, and Hinata under my care and instruction. Her clan isn't training her properly, and is interfering with Kurenai's ability to train her as well. I want no more interference, and if needed I will send for someone to spar with, nothing more. She can't learn if she's held back by them. She needs to find her own identity and techniques or she'll never improve. I also don't want any assassins after me! That's annoying, rude, and it didn't work with my village, so don't even try it! Agreed?"

"Agreed."

"Then we have a bargain."

The apartment was sparse, but clean. As promised, the kitchen was indeed stocked with meats, produce, spices, and other goods. Gaara sent several sand eyes to scout the place, while Hinata simply used her own eyes. The byakugan was a very useful thing. The coast was clear, so they went in. Kakashi and Kurenai went in with them.

"The Hokage believes that there will be a disturbance tomorrow at the continuation of the Chuunin exams. Your fight with Sasuke is still on, and Kankuro will still have his bout with Shino, despite withdrawing. The second round will progress from there." Kakashi was rather upbeat and cheerful, considering. Kurenai was a little more concerned.

"Hinata, are you sure that you're alright?" She nodded and gave a shy smile.

"Yes, we'll be fine, I'll give you the lecture on what you're teaching Sasuke later, Kakashi, I want a shower, and-what the hell?" Gaara had been rubbing his shoulders, and his fingers came away red with blood. He frowned and began to prod the area. More wet spots were along his shoulders and back.

"What the fuck? Those sorry bastards! They gave me fucking bedsores! Those assholes! Bedsores! Do you have any idea how incredibly dangerous those can be? I could've died! An infection could've taken hold and I could've gone septic! Those motherfucking assholes! I'm filing a complaint! Those sorry sons of bitches won't know what hit them! Bedsores! Son of a duck fucker, I had bedsores!"

"G-go take a shower, Gaara, and w-w-wash your m-mouth out with s-soap! Th-that language-"

"If you ever get hurt or sick, I swear I'm not taking you there! Those dipshits gave me bedsores!"

"Th-that's the only one w-w-we have, Gaara…"

"Then I'm building a new one! We'll call it the Konoha Hospital of the Bedsore-less, and the nurses will all be called pinched finches! Shitheads gave me bedsores…"

"Well, we'll just leave you to it, then. Later. Kakashi teleported away, and after a last look, so did Kurenai. Hinata could handle him fine, although what finches had to do with anything was beyond her.

"Alright then, I'm going to go shower, get the crap off of me," Gaara said, reaching through the shell of his gourd and retrieving his clothes. At least they were clean. Hinata nodded and padded to the kitchen area. The apartment was a simple affair, two rooms divided roughly in half. One was a bedroom; the other contained the living area, kitchen, and a door leading to the bathroom. The walls, doors, and tile in the bathroom were all white. The floors were hardwood that was medium brown. The kitchen counters and sink was all white, as were the cabinets, fridge, and stove. The faucets were all silver. Gaara rolled his eyes as he turned on the shower to full blast, hoping that it had decent pressure. He was sick and tired of white. He stripped himself of the hospital gown at long last, and stuffed it in the tiny white trashcan next to the toilet.

He climbed inside the shower and slid the door shut, which was clear, oddly enough. He let the water beat on his back, enjoying the scalding spray as it cleansed the blood from him. The sensation was soothing and sort of therapeutic. Normally he was fast and efficient at showering, not wanting to waste the water. However, he hadn't had one in months, and he wanted to enjoy it. He wet his hair, and poured the generic shampoo in his hand. It was in a, surprise, surprise, white bottle labeled 'mountain fresh,' whatever that meant. It smelled okay, he supposed, but what was with all the white shit anyway? Oh well, beggars can't be choosers. He began to scrub his scalp vigorously before rinsing it and grabbing his toothbrush and toothpaste. He brushed his teeth thoroughly while using a soap bar and sponge to clean the rest of himself. The bar had been labeled 'mountain spring,' and the toothpaste was 'arctic blast,' complete with an image of snowcapped mountains. He shook his head as he switched off the water and toweled off with a towel that was freaking white!

_I see white shit everywhere! _Shukaku's only response was a snort of laughter.

Gaara dressed swiftly, and exited the bathroom. He could smell something tasty cooking out there, something that, hopefully, wasn't white. Hinata's back was to him as she stirred something on the stove. She turned toward him and smiled shyly, and he knew that, at last, he was home.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter Twelve

"Hm, that smells good, what is it?" Gaara purred as he strode into the white kitchen. Alright, first thing tomorrow after the exam crap, he was going to the local hardware store and buying a can of paint. Any paint would do; even piss-yellow or baby-shit green. Too much white!

"Chicken noodle soup, you get one small bowl for now. Starving is hard on your body, and food should be introduced in small steps," Hinata stated rather matter-of-factly, complete with no stutter. She sounded like a mother hen. Gaara sighed forlornly.

"I'm a freaking demon, no bowl of soup is going to take me down, now fork it over-oh for cryin' out loud the bowl is fucking white!" Hinata just stared at him, both puzzled and slightly offended.

"I-I don't care how tough you are, you get one small bowl, and the color of the bowl is irrelevant! What do you have against white?"

"You haven't really looked around, have you? Everything, and I mean _everything, _is white! The soap, the bathroom, the bottles, the kitchen, everything is the same shitty shade of white! Too much white! Honestly, would it kill them to make something with, I don't know, shitty green or golden piss or something? Ooh, carrots, carrots are orange, I can do orange, c'mon, gimme gimme gimme!" he made grasping, beckoning motions with his hands, impatient and eager for food. Real food; and he was sure he could sweet talk her into giving him another bowl…

"W-well, most of these apartments are going to be generic…"

"Yeah, lack of imagination and all that. Hm, the bowl is still not in my hands, how can this be?" His sarcasm wasn't lost on Hinata. She gave him a cute scowl.

"You'll eat when you sit down and relax next to the mat! Manners, Gaara, really!"

"A mat is not a dining table! There is no dining table, which is good, because it would be white! Now, gimme that-"

"You park it right next to the mat and relax, or you'll get nothing at all! Sheesh, you are a terrible patient!"

"Bossy little finch, I should pinch you, you little…" his grumbles were lost as he did as she said. Besides, she would want a shower too, and he could sneak some more then. Heh heh heh, she'll never know!

"Y-you be sure to eat slowly, too. You could get sick…" she poked and twisted her fingers around worriedly. He glanced up briefly as she gave him the bowl.

"I'm not a patient patient." He looked rather smug as he said that.

"That's why I gave you a spoon instead of chopsticks, you have to eat slowly now!" now she fired off a smug smile of her own.

"I can eat with a spoon, knife, fork, and chopsticks, with either hand. Epic fail, finch!" that self-satisfied grin was plastered on his face, and Hinata was both irritated and worried. He could get really sick if he wasn't careful, and he had already died once, so…

"Gaara please, I don't wanna lose you again…" her fingers were twisting and poking at a speed that threatened the sound barrier. He sighed softly, now he felt guilty.

"Okay, okay, I'll eat slow and stuff; you can go take your shower. Beware the white shit, Hinata," he made shoeing motions with his hand. She lingered for a moment, and then scurried off. For crying out loud, she even gave him sad eyes before she shut the door. Gaara ate his soup, savoring every drop. It was too good to be true. His little finch could cook! How awesome was that? He sat a moment, and then decided to go after another bowl. The little pot was empty. What the hell?

"You see, I s-sorta figured th-that you'd try to eat too much, s-so I only made enough for one bowl…" there she was, twirling her fingers. He whirled around, feeling a little pissy. Little smart-aleckey finch!

"Defiant finch, it's time to get pinched!" he lunged forward and grasped her nose gently with his finger and thumb, tugging her head side to side. The look of shock on her face almost made up for the empty pot.

"Whaa? Leggo mby nbose!" her eyes were cross- and crossed. He was feeling very smug now. Serves her right, only making him one bowl! Even if she was worried…okay, so there was a valid reason, but he was a full demon now, his body was different…he thought. Okay, maybe he should just shut up and do as he was told. He released her nose with a playful tweak.

"You are so cute when you're cranky."

"Th-that's no excuse to g-grab my nose!" she was blushing now, but still rather cross. A knock at the door interrupted their playful spat. Gaara pulled open the door.

"Oh, great, it's you. What do you want now?"

"Always a pleasure, Lord Gaara. Good to see you both doing well." The Third walked in. Hinata bowed politely; Gaara just crossed his arms and gave him his trademark death glare.

"Well, as you know, you will be fighting Sasuke tomorrow, but after that battle, I would like you to be a judge for the exams. This may be enough to discourage Orochimaru from making a move, with you nearby."

"If I say yes, will you go away? I have errands to run tonight."

"G-Gaara, you shouldn't be going anywhere, y-you just g-g-got better! Y-you need rest!" Hinata piped up in worry. He reached over and gave her nose another tweak.

"Don't you worry, little finch, I'll be fine. It's a golden opportunity; I can ferret out Kabuto and see what that snake's little plot is. Other than you two and your clan, no one knows that I'm out and at fighting strength." The Third gave a nod of approval. Gaara was going to find out what was going on one way or another; he was too stubborn to be denied.

"So it's decided then. Good, I'll see you soon." The Hokage turned and walked out. Gaara watched him go; then turned to Hinata.

"So, about that mission snack…"

"No, you've eaten enough already! If you don't behave y-you'll-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," he leaned over and kissed her forehead quickly, making her blush. "I just like getting you all pissy, it's fun. Get some sleep, I'll see you in the morning." He slipped out the door.


	13. Chapter 13

Hey guys, here's another chapter! If you haven't noticed, I have started a new story called Asylum. I actually had the first chapter and a half or so done for over a year; I just didn't want to start it until I had Demon Dance done. However, Demon Dance's horror and Asylum's horror are two different types, and I am no longer concerned with accidentally mixing up my plots. That and, well, I couldn't resist anymore. So here I am, back to four stories at once. If you like creepy, gory, suspense horror that may or may not screw with your mind, check it out. If you don't, stay away, because I'm going to keep it creepy and messed up for a while. If you are offended by cannibalism, definitely stay away, because that's how chapter one starts. It's not Demon Dance style cannibalism either. Okay, enough of my advertising, here's the chapter!

Chapter Thirteen

She was having weird dreams. She wasn't sure what they were about, but they were weird. She had tried to wait up for Gaara, but failed miserably, crashing hard at about three in the morning or so. So here she was, curled up on the mat having weird dreams. Something alerted her, though; just enough to have her stir and groggily open her eyes.

Not two inches away was a pair of green eyes ringed in black. She shrieked at the top of her lungs and jerked back, falling on her butt since her feet had simultaneously tried to kick him and stand up. Gaara was laughing so hard he was doubled over holding his sides. Hinata glared at him furiously. He could be such a butt!

"Good morning to you too, little finch," he said in response to her glare.

"Y-you could've j-just tapped my sh-shoulder or something!"

"That's not as much fun."

"Y-you are a meanie! What t-time is it anyway?'

"Six in the morning."

"Wh-why are y-you waking me up? We d-don't need to be at the a-arena for four hours!"

"Early morning training for you," his eyes narrowed suspiciously, "what time did you go to bed?"

"W-well I tried to wait u-up, but I was too t-tired, so at around three?" she poked her fingers together, and looked rather guilty.

"Didn't I tell you to go to sleep before I left?"

"Well, I w-was w-worried…" he made an exasperated sound.

"Well, it sucks to be you, now doesn't it? You need to train! Honestly, I left just after midnight, so you should've gotten more sleep!" he scolded as he walked over to her. He put his hands on her shoulders.

"I understand that you were worried, but you didn't exactly have an easy night yourself! You need to take care of yourself too, or you'll burn out, little finch."

"B-but-"

"No buts, I don't like seeing you suffer. Don't worry, we can train right here, after breakfast. Hm, I will make eggs, with bacon, and cheese. Maybe some toast too. Do we have potatoes? Potatoes would be good. Mm, and ham, I like ham. Sausage too, the old man did say we have a stocked kitchen, so let's- hey!" Hinata had darted in front of him and had cut him off. She was giving a very nasty little glare. He stared down at her, hoping she'd reconsider that devious plot forming in her mind. He could see it in her eyes.

"You w-will not p-put e-even one toe i-in that kitchen! You will wait for me while I go brush my teeth and _I _will m-make breakfast!" she poked him sharply in his chest. Yep, she was going ahead with her devious plan. He gave her a sulky glare.

"I'm hungry. I want to eat. I have to fight Sasuke. I need a good breakfast."

"You will get a g-good b-breakfast, but y-y-you will b-be careful! Y-you'll eat wh-what I give you!" and with that she marched off to the bathroom to brush her teeth. When she got out she shooed him off to the mat, where he sulked. Soon after a hot bowl of oatmeal with cream, honey, and what appeared to be pear chunks was passed to him. It was depressingly small.

"That's it? Oh, come ON! I can eat twelve of these and still be hungry!" he poked it with his spoon.

"Your w-welcome. Oatmeal is filling, don't be s-such a wh-whiner, it d-doesn't suit you." She spooned some up from her bowl. Hers had cinnamon. He scowled at that.

"Where's mine?"

"I d-didn't think th-that y-you'd want any…"

"By having cinnamon you have more food in your bowl than I do. That's not fair, greedy finch!" he growled at her. Okay, so he was grasping and he could tell that she was on to him. When Hinata was on nurture mode, nothing and no one got by her, oh no, she planted herself quite firmly and didn't budge. Not even for him. There was a brief flicker of something in her eyes, but before he could figure it out she lifted her spoon and daintily scraped the very edge of her oatmeal. The resulting thimbleful was dropped in Gaara's bowl. He frowned at her.

"There, th-that was a little m-more than wh-what the cinnamon actually a-added to my bowl. Y-you can't complain about th-that anymore."

"Smartass, I'll find something, little finch." She looked rather smug as she continued to delicately eat her breakfast. Yep, she had really meant to be a smartass. He smirked.

"You know, I don't think I've had anyone do that before, finch. Feisty little thing aren't you?" he said contemplatively, looking at her with his head slightly tilted. She gave him wide eyes, full of innocence and questions. He smirked at her.

"Doesn't mean you're getting out of your training," he triumphantly spooned the last of his oatmeal into his mouth and gestured to the floor. She ate her last few bites and took the dishes to the sink. He sat on his knees on the floor; slightly raised up due to putting his weight on them. His back was straight. He tapped the floor on his left side.

"Get in a sitting position that you will be comfortable in for a while. Good, now then, I'm going to teach you how to meditate. Close your eyes and get a sense of your surroundings. Clear your mind, and concentrate on your breathing. Oh; and don't fall asleep."

"Why a-am I s-s-sitting h-here?"

"Meditation. It is a mental discipline. Such mental discipline will benefit all other areas of training. Now then, clear your mind. Concentrate on your breathing. Close your eyes. Get a sense of your surroundings."

"B-but-"

"You can't get a sense of your surroundings if you keep talking." She huffed a little at his tone, but complied. For several minutes, it was quiet and still in their apartment, but then she fidgeted a little. Several more minutes passed, before she fidgeted again, sneaking a look at him. His eyes were closed, and he was perfectly still. She blinked; how could he do that?

"If it helps you; try to imagine something soothing. A song, an image, a color, whatever works for you. And no more peeking." Aw, man, how had he known? His eyes were shut! She huffed and tried to comply. His advice did help a little; now she could go ten to fifteen minutes in between fidgets. After an hour, he tapped her.

"Not bad for a beginner, we'll try again tonight. Up you go." He helped her to her feet; she was blinking owlishly, having been perilously close to falling asleep. Silly little thing. Still, all things considered, not bad. This was a skill that took time to master; but once attained it was a gateway for so much more. His little one would benefit so much from it; not the least of which was better chakra control. A whole new world of jutsu would open up for her.

"Well, I have to run a few more errands and such; I will meet you at the exams, alright?" she nodded.

"I'll p-p-pack us l-lunch." He gave her that slight smile that was just for her as he headed out the door.

Later that day she was fidgeting nervously at the entrance gate where the contestants were. All of the participants were there, even the ones who had lost. Except for two; Gaara and Sasuke. While she knew that Gaara was off "running errands," she had no clue as to where his opponent was.

"Aw man! This is the second time that he's been late, and now that Gaara is too! This is such a drag!" Shikamaru had shown up, on time. Shocking to all, he knew, but seriously, what was up? If he had to get here on time, why couldn't everyone else? Naruto had been loudly complaining about their tardiness for some time, while the other two sand siblings exchanged worried looks. Their mentor had been acting strange last night; like he'd seen a ghost. Something about an assassination attempt against their father. No doubt their demented brother would be overjoyed at the news.

Shino and Neji were unconcerned as far as anyone could tell. Hinata made sure to keep away from her cousin; even if he seemed to be less ill-tempered, she wasn't taking any chances. He had hated her ever since that cloud ninja had tried to kidnap her.

That was when Gaara showed up; speaking to the Hokage. Everyone stared at him in blatant shock. Naruto and Shikamaru were especially concerned; having witnessed him kill once already, as was Shino. However, Naruto wasn't diplomatic about it.

"AHHHH! Old Man Hokage, get away from him! He'll kill you!" The Third and Gaara turned to him with a scowl, Gaara's especially frightening. He decided to go for a more sophisticated way of telling him to fuck off.

"Shut up, it's rude to interrupt. An ill-bred street urchin has no business interrupting conversations between those of higher rank than him." The fact that his own demon blood made most people consider him tainted, and the fact that he had been living on his own in a crappy apartment in a shitty neighborhood was beside the point. In fact, he still lived in a crappy apartment; although the location had changed. Hopefully the new locale wasn't shitty. Naruto looked confused, and slightly insulted.

"Make that an _ignorant _ill-bred street urchin with questionable intelligence."

"Say what? I don't know what half of that means, but-"

"Clearly. I'm calling you an uneducated stupid street bum, and I'm telling you to fuck off." Naruto's jaw dropped, as did everyone else's. Gaara bit back a laugh. This was hilarious, and was a good way to pass the time until Sasuke showed up. Hinata was giving him a reproachful look.

"G-G-Gaara! Th-that l-language-"

"You hush; he asked for it." His voice was so bland.

"Hey! You-" Naruto was cut off as Gaara whirled around and was less than a foot away before anyone could even blink. Naruto's eyes went wide.

"Have you ever seen someone crushed to death while upside down?" Gaara hissed malevolently. Naruto gulped.

"Do you want to?" Naruto stared at him. Gaara gave a chilling smile; the one he wore when anticipating an exceptionally pleasing kill.

"I didn't think so." He turned to Hinata. His eyes narrowed, while hers got big as saucers; why the heck was he giving her the glare of imminent death?

"You lied. You said I would be full, and here I am, not even close." At this her back went up a little.

"N-no, I s-said that oatmeal w-was filling, I n-never s-said you'd be f-f-full." He made a disgusted sound. The Hokage chuckled.

"You're an excellent teacher, Lord Gaara." Now he gave the old man the evil glare.

"Whatever do you mean?" oh, he was in a very, _very_ pissy mood. The Hokage grinned.

"You've already taught her how to be a smartass. That's quite the feat, considering." Gaara's eyes were still glaring, but there had been a brief flicker of pleasure in them.

"You just wait when I start on other skills; she's going to be a terror then. I need chakra paper; to test for her primary chakra nature. After this fiasco is concluded, I will begin to train with her."

"SAY WHAT? Old Man, you can't have him train with her, he'll-"

"Yes, yes, I'll kill her. We've all heard it before. Shut up, urchin." Gaara wasn't helping his case any.

"Besides that, he's a Genin, and so is she. You have to be at least a Jonin to take on a pupil of Genin rank." Shino was a little more logical. Shikamaru, however, didn't say a word; he had his suspicions on Gaara now. He had dispatched those Chunin at the initial exam so easily, and the way he was talking with the Hokage only strengthened them. So what was going on?

"Where's the Uchiha? I don't have time to stand around here all day!" Gaara wasn't feeling patient today. He knew that he would come, he was too proud not to, but being made to wait was rude. Last time the crowd had gotten too impatient, and there wasn't much that they could use to distract them. They could very well riot.

Temari's next fight couldn't take place until the battle between Shino and Kankuro, and that particular bout could very well test their patience and end too early. Kankuro wielded poison; swift and lethal, while Shino wielded parasitic insects with stealthy and devastating results. Of course none of that mattered if Kankuro withdrew again.

If all went well, Naruto would battle Sasuke. Even though Gaara was going to thrash him, he couldn't technically compete, having already surpassed this particular rank. Gaara personally thought that it would be funny to have the fox take on his sister, even if they were in different brackets for the exam. Hopefully, he would win against the Uchiha and then face one of his siblings. Just to see the looks on their faces when he went into his trademark hyperactive insulting whirlwind of energy as he fought them would be priceless. Maybe he would use his infamous "sexy jutsu" that he had heard so much about. Hm, a naked blond bombshell fighting in the exams…yep, that would be hilarious.

Gaara was ignoring the rant from said fox, while the Hokage was just giving him one of his looks that conveyed such exasperation while at the same time looking amused and touched. Hinata and the rest were watching with stunned expressions at some of the things that were being said. Diplomacy, thy name is NOT Naruto. Hn, fifteen, no, twenty minutes and he was already starting a war between two nations. Had to be some kind of record; and it was good that Gaara sensed the Uchiha then.

Gaara walked up behind Naruto and tapped his shoulder. He jumped a mile in the air and scuttled diagonally backwards away from him. Gaara personally thought that he reminded him of a crab. He bit back a smirk. The fox was WAY too much fun to play with.

"Moron; get back to the waiting area."

"SAY WHAT? Look, pal, I'm not-"

"You are a moron, and you will get back up there, or I'll make you."

"Now, you hold it, buster-"

"Crushed. Upside down."

"Fine, I'm going, I'm going."

"Amazing how death-threats make everyone get along so much better." That last bit from Gaara was almost cheerful. Hinata sighed softly as she followed the others up. She should be in the stands, but for some reason he had wanted her down here with the others. Something about how one of the ANBU wasn't an ANBU. She shivered slightly. From what little she had heard, neither Orochimaru nor the Kazekage were people she wanted to meet. Human experimentation without the consent of the subjects was so wrong, she couldn't even begin to describe how. Look at the pain that Gaara had gone through, and look at the damage that Orochimaru had caused.

Everyone was in their place; the exam-takers, the Hokage, Genma, Gaara, everyone. Hinata looked at Gaara closely; she could tell by the oh-so-slight frown that he was irritated. She smiled softly; he didn't like waiting. Oh he was patient, but if you kept him waiting he made you suffer for it. He considered it rude. His opinion of manners was so complicated that she didn't even know where to begin.

Her musings were cut short when Sasuke and Kakashi whirled in the arena with autumn leaves swirling rapidly around them. The people in the crowd were impressed, but she could tell that Gaara was still irritated. Oh yes, when he got that look in his eyes, someone was going to suffer for it, and they had served Sasuke up on a silver platter.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter Fourteen

"So you finally decided to show up. To show up late to this event – twice – is perhaps one of the rudest things I can think of. You think that you are a special case? There are literally hundreds of nobles and higher ranking ninja in the stands waiting for you. Ninja that are far superior to you, yet you have the audacity to make them wait yet again?" Gaara was beyond pissed at this point. To be made to wait for so long was irritating. He should flunk his ass just for that alone!

"Yeah, well, you're the one who spazed out last time. I'm surprised that they let you compete this time," Sasuke said with a smirk. Gaara's eyes narrowed. He was going to wipe that smug smile right off his face! Little smartass, well, he'll just see how cocky he was when he was quivering on the arena ground!

Genma gave a downward chop to begin the fight, and Sasuke wasted no time in lunging forward at Gaara. His fist was clenched and he drew back; aiming for his jaw. Gaara stepped nimbly aside. Sasuke came at him again with a sweeping high kick, and Gaara nimbly dodged yet again. This continued for several minutes, and Sasuke was growing frustrated.

"Come and fight you sand rat!" Gaara cocked his head.

"Oh, we were fighting? My apologies, I didn't realize." He lunged forward and delivered a blinding combination that ended with a brutal kick to Sasuke's chest. He went flying into the arena wall and fell limply to the ground.

"Oh, come now, surely you're not done yet, Uchiha?" Sasuke struggled to his feet. He activated his Sharingan, hoping to read the chakra and dodge his attacks. He charged Gaara, who smirked and blocked his jab and slammed his knee into his diaphragm violently. Sasuke gagged and was unable to dodge the second kick to his chest. He went flying into the arena wall again, leaving a hole in the concrete again, and crumbled to the ground again. He shuddered violently. How was he doing that? He looked at Gaara, who was standing there waiting for him. He wasn't even trying, and was using taijutsu which was by far his weakest technique according to Kakashi. The monster was playing with him. Well, playtime was over, right now. He reached for the straps on his arm. Ideally he wouldn't be using this until he was immobilized or misdirected, but if he could just pick up his speed he could make it work.

"Figure it out yet, you idiot?" Sasuke ground his teeth as he wove the symbols, launching his Chidori without a hitch. He sped to Gaara, the lightning crackling and chirping at the end of his arm. Gaara gave him a smug little smirk. He snatched him just above his wrist and slammed it into the ground, making a huge smoldering crater. Sasuke grunted in pain as his body absorbed the shockwave while Gaara had leaped clear.

Strong fingers jerked his head upright by his scalp. He stared into those cold green eyes.

"H-how?" Sasuke gasped out. Gaara smirked wickedly.

"I'm not using chakra, dumbass." And with that he drop kicked him into the wall for the third time. This time Sasuke stayed down. Gaara turned and wandered over to the ground entry, hoping that he could sweet talk Hinata out of lunch. Beating up dumbasses always worked up quite the appetite.

Naruto was running down the stairs alongside Hinata. He was freaked out that Sasuke had been beaten so badly. Gaara sighed softly. Maybe if he did a good deed she'd give him an extra helping?

"Oh, relax, I didn't use chakra. If your village's medical team is competent, he should be on his feet by the end of the day." Naruto looked at him skeptically, but he had already turned toward Hinata.

"That should ensure me an extra helping." She blinked at him. He held his hand out for his lunch, which she was not giving him. His eyes narrowed in suspicion. He was not going to let her hold out on him.

"Cough it up, finch!"

"N-n-not yet, y-you shouldn't eat so s-soon after exercise, you sh-should really d-drink more fluids instead…" she held out a bottle of water. He glared at it. Sure, he was a little thirsty, but he really wanted lunch to accompany it! He growled softly and snatched the bottle, chugging it swiftly.

"There, now then, about that lunch…"

"Um, y-you should r-really eat sitting down…"

"Oh for – come on, we are going upstairs and we will sit. Then I _will have lunch…_" his voice was rather ominous, and Hinata was doing her best to look chastised, but inside was feeling rather smug. She was pretty sure he was on to her, but still, she was winning. Hah!

As they reached the viewing balcony for the candidates, he tugged her over to the left corner to sit. He did his best to ignore the dirty sidelong looks from the others, but inwardly he seethed. How was he the bad guy here?! Last time he checked, SHE was the one holding out on him! But _no, _HE was the bad guy here! What kind of fucked up justice was this?!

He drummed his fingers as she got out the thermos full of what smelled like chicken and spices. By now Naruto had come back up and was giving him his version of a death glare. Gaara personally thought that his was much better than Naruto's. He could make someone piss themselves, but Naruto just encouraged someone to be snotty. Case and point, coming up in three, two, one…

"Go and glare elsewhere, you irritating little shit." See? The glare practically demanded snottiness! Naruto gave him a wide-eyed look at the swear word, and then fired back.

"I'm bigger than you, you mean little raccoon puppy!"

"Actually the proper term is 'kit', although 'cub' is also used. If you're going to insult me, at least do it correctly, you moronic little fuckwit."

"PFFFFFFF!" Naruto was so shocked and insulted that he couldn't talk. His face was reminiscent of a boiled lobster. Gaara turned to Hinata; there was no way he was letting her get away with starving him! He wanted his damn lunch!

"Give me my lunch, you little puffed up finch!"

"Y-you should be more patient," she said serenely as she began to carefully unpack their cooler. He glared at her.

"Finches can be prone to pinches."

"Pinched finches don't feed cranky demons."

"I could just pinch you and take my lunch."

"Th-then you would g-get no dinner."

"I can very persuasive."

"D-doubtful."

"If you don't cook me dinner, you'll be meditating for six hours before bed with the TV, stereo, and blender all on at the same time while I walk around you banging pots together." She looked up at him in shock. He was such a devious snot!

"I-I don't think we have a TV, o-or a stereo…"

"I can buy them at the pawn shop."

"B-but-"

"Excuse me, but WHO is the ranking ninja here?! That's right, me. So, little finch, pipe down and give me my lunch! A hungry demon is a cranky demon, and I'm _famished_." He made grabbing motions as she put the finishing touches on his thermos cap full of rice and chicken. He took one look at it and spluttered indignantly.

"It's WHITE! What the hell is WRONG with YOU?!" Hinata thinned her lips, yanked it back and squirted a healthy stream of blue food coloring that she had hid in her pocket. She had had a feeling that he would complain about that. She briskly stirred it with the chopsticks before handing it back to him. Everyone was shocked; especially Gaara. He held up a piece of blue chicken gingerly, eyeing it with speculation.

"Teach me to complain," he mused as he popped it in his mouth. Hinata looked smug.

"Hm, blue chicken does taste good."

"J-just wait until y-you try p-purple." He eyed her. He couldn't believe that she had just said that with a straight face.

"I think I'll pass," he mumbled as he continued to eat. He wasn't up to anymore food challenges for today.


	15. Chapter 15

I don't own the musical reference, but I'm not sure who does, so, um, kudos to the song owners. Moving on.

Chapter Fifteen

Gaara bit back a sigh as he moved upstairs followed by a loud Naruto and a very, _very _smug Hinata. Apparently he was to sit by the Hokage (meh, whatever,) and his father, the Kazekage, (totally sucks ass, and causes migraines to boot,) for the rest of the exams. He had managed to get Hinata up there with him, and Naruto was following him and asking questions faster than an ANBU threw kunai. When he had eaten blue chicken; it had made it open season on him, and Naruto was taking advantage. Lousy punk, damn smartass Hinata, stupid fucking appetite, all contributed to making his life a living hell. Ignoring the fox did no good; he just talked louder.

"So if you're like some super ninja guy, then why in the heck are you taking the exams? Are you an undercover judge or something? Hey, does this mean I pass? Why do you carry your sand in a gourd? What about a sack? Or a cactus, or an apple, why not a squash? Or maybe a pumpkin? How about a giant peanut? What are those black markings on it? So if you don't sleep, what do you do all night? Does the mister sandman song bother you?" Gaara gritted his teeth. That was the last time he ate blue anything. It brought him nothing but trouble.

"So what about white? You don't like white? Why? I mean, I think it's a boring color, but I don't hate it. Do you like orange? I like orange, as you can tell. It's the best color in the world! Hey, Hinata, next time make the food orange! It'll cheer him up-YEEAARRRGH!" Gaara pinned him to the wall and glared into his eyes.

"Shut. The. Fuck. Up." He dropped him and continued walking. Naruto took several deep breaths. Man, he was so scary. He watched him for a while, and then ran to catch up.

"Hey! Could you teach me that? How do you do that? I wanna be scary too! I could waste entire armies with my evil scary eyes!" he jumped in front of Gaara and gestured wildly to his eyes, squinting and crossing them, trying to be scary. Gaara could hear Hinata giggling behind him. Well, glad someone's having a good time. Gaara shoved Naruto aside and kept walking up the stairs to the kages. No teleporting was allowed at this level unless it was an emergency. Damn it.

"Hey, am I doing this right? C'mon, glare-kage, you need to help me! I can't do it on my own, c'mon, watch me!" he jumped in front of Gaara again and put his face inches from his, squinting and crossing his eyes. That's it, he was declaring an emergency. He shoved his face with his hand violently and snatched his giggling Hinata up and teleported to the kages, who looked shocked. He looked at the old man.

"It was an emergency." The Third looked puzzled, while the Kazekage looked outraged.

"Emergency? I don't see an emergency."

"You filthy half-breed! You traitorous rabid dog, how dare you-"

"You shut up; no one wants to hear your complaints dumbass. It was a dire emergency, Lord Hokage."

"But I still don't see-"

"HEY! I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW THAT IT'S RUDE TO SHOVE SOMEONE AND TELEPORT AWAY, EVEN IF IT WAS A COOL TRICK! C'MON, YOU GOTTA TEACH ME, GAARA! I'LL BE A GOOD STUDENT! YOU'RE HELPING HINATA, WHY NOT ME?" his foxy nemesis was screaming at the top of his lungs and running up the stairs. Gaara's eye twitched. That kid had a set of lungs on him. He turned to the Hokage.

"How is that not an emergency?" Gaara pointed at Naruto, who looked puzzled. The Hokage burst out laughing. The Kazekage firmed his lips in a disapproving line under his mask. Yeah, well, he wasn't being chased by the crazy fox, now was he? Hinata was stifling her giggles desperately. The Kazekage's glare became even harsher, but when compared to Gaara's…it was lacking. Better than her father's, but still not at Gaara's level. He was the king of death glares.

"Hey! Let me through! I gotta talk to Gaara! C'mon, let me through! Gaara! Tell him I'm with you! C'mon, I'll owe you, believe it!"

"I do believe it, but how does that help me, you ramen-sucking pain in the ass?" Hinata was practically gagging on her restrained laughter, while fanning her hands in the air at him; trying to scold him for being rude. It seemed like he had a buddy now whether he liked it or not. The Hokage was doubled over, and clutching his sides. It was nice to have someone else for Naruto to target with his antics. Poor Gaara.

The Hokage had explained his new position to the Kazekage, and he had reluctantly agreed. He hadn't been happy about it, but the old man had outmaneuvered him, and the evidence that Orochimaru had been planning to kill him all along had sealed the deal. Besides, now Gaara was their problem, and good riddance.

Gaara glanced down and then turned to Hinata. An idea was taking shape in his mind, a devilish idea that would surely get him in trouble, but would, probably, be worth it. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his simple black wallet. He handed over some money to Hinata.

"Would you be an angel and please get me something to drink? I can't leave until this portion of the exams is concluded. Get yourself something too." She smiled and bobbed her head, and skipped off to do as he wished. He waited a few moments and allowed himself a smirk. She was entirely too trusting. He turned to Naruto.

"Shut up and pay attention, you fucked up fox! You want up here? Well, you have to do something for me. Go get me food, anything but sweets, and be quick about it! Get back here before she does, or there'll be hell to pay. You have shadow clones, use them; now get going!" Naruto stared at him, excited.

"Does this mean you'll train me?"

"I'll take it under advisement, now scat; you're wasting time."

"Alright! I'll get you the best food out there; believe it!" he snatched the money from Gaara's hand and took off, poofing into multiple clones that raced off in different directions. Gaara chuckled softly.

"Heh, he has no idea that he's a glorified gofer for me, this is going to be fun."

"Not when she catches you with food."

"Don't say nasty things, Old Man, it's not polite." Gaara scowled at him.

"You're one to talk," he said in response, a faint smile on his lips. Gaara returned his attentions to the field, waiting for Shino and Kankuro to begin their fight. He hoped Naruto made it back in time; a good show needed snacks, and he didn't want Hinata taking them. He could see her down there waiting politely at the end of a very long line. She had no idea that he had slipped a small disk made of his sand in the pocket of her pants. He was taking no chances while Orochimaru was scheming nearby. He had a feeling of disquiet; he knew that he had upset the timing of their plans by savagely beating Sasuke. The snake had been hoping to kidnap the boy for his own purposes, but couldn't risk it now. It was unsafe to move him. Gaara felt smug about that; if he could deny a pedophile his treat, then so much the better.

The proctor stepped to the middle of the field, commanding everyone'd attention. His brother stepped out into the field, moving to the center. Shino joined him. Gaara cocked his head; interested. How would this match end? He could see it going either way; it was sure to be close. He smirked slightly; they would soon find out.


End file.
